Of Silver Crystals and Feathers
by Zipora Tsuki
Summary: **Complete**SMFFIX Years ago she had a dream involving the Moon Kingdom which was different from any other. Now while tracking down a new enemy, Cosmos is about to find out that maybe there was a bit more to her past than what she had been told.
1. Chapter 1

ZT: Hey everyone. I needed a break from re-writing FS2 and decided that all my extra story thoughts needed to go into something. I noticed that there weren't very many SMff9 crossovers out there; in fact I haven't found one on yet, so, I decided to change that. Just a warning, this is Usa-centered and may have a bit of Mamo-bashing (In fact I can pretty much guarantee he'll be bashed if brought up.) Anyway, on with the show, I don't own SM or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Prologue

Usagi blinked as she glanced around her new surroundings. She recognized it easily as the Moon Kingdom palace but why was she here? Was there a new enemy? Rei and Setsuna hadn't said anything. Or maybe she was ambushed and didn't realize it. 'Don't tell me someone killed me again!' she groaned to herself. Why else would she be here? Every time she was brought to this place it was because she was having a rendezvous with her dead mother who gave her something to defeat a new enemy and/or revive her. Why would this time be any different?

"Ok mother, I'm here! What do I need to do?" she called out when she noticed that the queen was nowhere in sight.

"Uh…Who're you yelling at?" Usagi jumped when the new voice spoke behind her. His features were hidden quite well in the shadows, but she was able to make out that he was wearing armor similar to Endymon's, except it was white with the designs being light blue in color.

She stared at him a few moments, trying to figure out if she had seen this person before, or if she could put a name to the voice. After a few tries, she found she couldn't. "Um, sorry, but who are you?"

The person's eyebrows rose, though how Usagi could tell this without seeing his features, she couldn't begin to guess. He was silent for a few seconds, and then suddenly laughed, "Good one Seren! You actually made me think you forgot me for a second there!" He stopped and paused for a moment, "You…are joking right?"

She could hear the tinge of worry in his voice when he asked the last part, and she couldn't help but feel guilty at what she was about to say, "I'm sorry, but I don't know who you are."

"C'mon quit fooling around. It's me; your bro," he replied with a half nervous laugh.

Usagi blinked confused. Her brother? This wasn't Shingo! 'Wait, he keeps calling me "Seren"' she told herself. 'That must be short for Serenity, and it would make sense that he would think I'm her-me-past me- whatever that's called! ...I had a brother in my past life?' she asked herself confused. How come Luna and Artemis never brought this up? After all, that would make him a moon prince and just as important to find as she was…Maybe Lunarian princes weren't as important as princesses. But still, wouldn't they at least tell her that she had a family member out there? Maybe he wasn't revived…But then why would her mother only revive one child and not them both? It was so confusing!

The man studied her as she had a debate with herself over something. Had what he said really stumped her that bad? "Are you ok?"

"Since when do I have a brother??" she finally blurted out.

There was complete silence between the two for about a minute. It was so quiet in fact that Usagi was sure she gave the poor guy a heart attack and that he had just died standing up. Then, a noise broke the silence. It sounded a harsh breath being forced out. It was followed by another round of rich laugh coming from the guy. "You know, if you ever decided to run away from the palace, you should go hide out with a band of actors. You're really good at getting into character when you want to. Okay I'll play along. No I'm not your brother really. I wonder how you would have reacted if I told you I was your husband though," he got out between his laughter.

"_You're my husband??!!!_" she shrieked.

This only made the man laugh harder, "No!" He caught his breath before starting up again, "Alright princess, let's be complete strangers for a moment then." He bowed deeply to her, his long loose bangs falling forward as he did, "I am Erymanthus, prince of the Sun, son of Apollo, and the Champion of the fair Moon princess Serenity." He stood upright again, brushing his bangs back in place as he did and winking at her as he did (Again, she wondered how she could see that when she couldn't see his facial features.), "Well, that's what I tell other people when I'm supposed to be polite and act all noble at least. I guess royals aren't allowed to have best friends since childhood who act as siblings to each other, huh?"

"I guess…" Usagi said slowly. At least she knew the guy's name now…

"OH! Almost forgot!" Erymanthus smacked his forehead as something obviously came to him. "Panagiotis wanted me to find you." He beckoned for her to follow, "Come on, he's this way."

"Pana…giotis?" she made a bit of a face as the foreign name rolled off her tongue but followed Erymanthus none the less.

"Oh don't tell me you're gonna pretend like you don't know him either?" he asked, not bothering to turn around. He seemed to know the answer because she saw his shoulders slump forward a little in defeat, "You know, the newly appointed high priest. The one you used to make a point of bothering during his training?"

The name still didn't ring a bell, so Usagi resigned herself to following the man in front of her. They walked down a hall and down some stairs to a garden. He led her through the garden towards a gazebo. As they neared it, Usagi noticed a young man there sipping tea, but again, all she could manage to make out about his appearance was that he wore an outfit similar to the one Helios had worn in his human form. She guessed it was just the attire that Silver Alliance priests wore or something.

Erymanthus whistled to get the other's attention, "Hey Pana-man! I found her!"

The man put his tea cup down and stood up. He walked over to them with a grace that could put Michiru to shame in her opinion. He walked past Erymanthus and right up to her. When he was a few feet away from her, he stopped and bowed in much the same manner that Erymanthus had earlier. "Serenity." His voice made her chest tighten. That voice, it was so smooth and deep, reminding her of rich chocolate cream. Actually, scratch that, that voice was much better than chocolate cream! He stood up from his bow and looked down at her, "I…"

* * *

"_**USAGI!!!!!!!!!**_" Usagi squeaked in surprise as Luna's yelling finally startled her awake from her dream, effectively making her fall off her bed in a tangled mess of crescent moon sheets, bunny pajamas, one pancaked Luna, and a half asleep/half startled Usagi. 

Usagi rubbed her eyes, "Mm, Luna…can't I have five more minutes?"

"Wook a' teh crock!" Luna's muffled voice came from underneath the massive pile.

Usagi blinked a moment before looking at the clock, guessing that's what Luna said to do. At first it didn't register what she was talking about, then the clock digits sunk in. "_**AHHHHHHHHHH! I'M GOING TO BE LATE!!**_" she screamed, grabbing her uniform and running into the bathroom.

* * *

Later that day, after school and detention from being late, Usagi walked towards Rei's temple with Makoto and Ami who had stayed after school for club meetings. At the moment Ami was reading one of her books while Makoto was talking about some cute guy in her gardening club. However, Usagi wasn't paying attention. Her mind was focused on the dream from the night before. She guessed that that was a good thing earlier when she was caught daydreaming in class. Her teacher had asked her for the name of some specific person from mythology. Turns out 'Erymanthus' was the name she had been looking for, so when Usagi spewed it out without thinking, she got it right. She guessed it was a good thing that she said that one and not Panagiotis. She guessed that one of the specifics being that the person was the "Son of Apollo" helped in her decision, although the Erymanthus in her dream wasn't blind, and hadn't said that he was a river god in his introduction to her… 

"Usagi-chan, are you feeling ok?" Usagi was taken from her thoughts by Ami's concerned voice.

"Yeah, you've been really out of it all day," Makoto voiced her concerns as well.

"Hm? Oh, sorry guys. I've just been thinking…I had a really weird dream last night and it's been bugging me."

Makoto shared a concerned glance with Ami. Last time dreams were brought up they wound up facing Queen Nehelenia and the Amazons. "About what?" Ami asked.

Usagi shrugged, "I'm not sure, to be honest it could have just as easily have been to the three ice cream sundaes, five cookies, and two slices of chocolate crème pie I had before going to bed." Ami and Makoto felt sweat drops form on the backs of their heads when Usagi spoke of how much desert she had.

"Was it a nightmare?" Ami pressed, trying to figure out if they should be worried or not.

Usagi shook her head, her blond pigtails swishing back and forth as she did, "No, it wasn't a nightmare, but it did involve the Moon Kingdom and two people who I had never met before. I kinda want to talk to Luna and Setsuna about them. In my dream they, or at least one of them, seemed to be really close to the Moon Princess. I'm curious if he actually existed or not…"

"Hmm…well both of them will be at the scout meeting. Maybe you can ask them then," Makoto suggested.

Usagi thought about it a moment before nodding, "Good idea, I think I will…"

* * *

"Two men from the Moon Kingdom? Were they cute?" Minako asked, excited. They were at Rei's temple now, listening to Usagi describe her dream to them. Of course, as soon as Usagi said that the two individuals in her dream were of the opposite gender of herself, Minako immediately went into boy crazy mode. 

"I don't know. I couldn't see their faces," Usagi replied with a sweat drop. "But I did get their names. In fact, I got one's full title."

Rei let one of her finely shaped eyebrows raise at that, "Why did one give you his title?"

Usagi shrugged, "He thought I was fooling around when I said I didn't know him and gave me a whole introduction." She put a digit up to her chin in thought, "He called me his 'sister' though, that's what really threw me off I guess."

There were three gasps when she said this, making the rest of the people in the room turn their attention to the ones responsible for the sound. "Sounds like you three know who she's talking about," Haruka said, looking at the two cat guardians and Setsuna.

Setsuna looked over at Usagi rather than answer the scout of Uranus's question directly, "This boy, did he by any chance say that he was a prince of the Sun?"

Usagi looked at the time keeper in surprise before nodding, "Yeah, that was part of his intro. He said his name was Erymanthus, son of Apollo."

"Hey, wasn't that the name of the guy in mythology class?" Makoto asked.

The scout of the moon nodded, "That's how I got the question right; I was thinking about the dream when the teacher asked me. When she said that the person she wanted me to identify was the son of Apollo, I just blurted out the name and wound up being right."

"Many names of those of the Moon Kingdom have found their way into the mythology of Earth," Luna explained, "But Erymanthus was very much a real prince from the Silver Alliance." She paused a moment, thinking about something, "Usagi-chan, was the other in your dream a priest?"

Usagi nodded, "Yeah, I think his name was Panasomething. I only heard the name once in the dream. The second time Erymanthus called him"

"Pana-man, right?" Artemis interjected, receiving a nod from the former moon princess. He shared a glance with the others. They never thought they would have to talk to the scouts about those two, at least not for a while.

"So, who are they then?" Makoto asked, looking at the three.

"And why is Usagi having dreams about them?" Rei asked as well.

"Erymanthus, as said earlier, was the prince of the sun, and the final member of the princess's court. He fought along side you girls when the Negaverse attacked. Panagiotis was the high priest of the Moon Kingdom at the time. Both died during the attack," Luna explained.

Usagi was puzzled by this, "If Erymanthus was one of my protectors, why wasn't he reborn along with the rest of us?"

"We're not sure to be honest. When Queen Selenity used the Silver Crystal to revive everyone, she couldn't revive them," Artemis answered.

"What?! Why?!" the girls exclaimed.

"Their souls vanished the moment they passed on. For a time we thought that their souls had been reincarnated almost instantly, however, there has been no sign of one who possesses the power of the Sun or a male who has been blessed by the moon." Setsuna replied.

"That still doesn't explain why they showed up in Usagi-chan's dream though," Michiru pointed out, "From the sound of it, they wanted to make their presence known, but why now?"

"…Maybe they are finally about to be reincarnate, and wanted Usagi to know about them," Rei suggested.

"That sounds possible. We'll just have to wait and see what happens," Artemis said, closing the discussion for the night.

A week later, Galaxia and her forces came to Earth, and thus started the Sailor StarS season. With the events going on, Erymanthus and Panagiotis were pushed to the back of their minds as the sailor scouts fought their most dangerous foes yet...

…and lost.

* * *

Well that's the prologue. Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	2. Chapter 2

ZT: Hey people! Hope you like the prologue to Of Silver Crystals and Feathers. Now the real story begins and the crossover starts rearing its ugly head.

Kuja: So Brahn's a part of this then?

ZT: Um-er-no…

Kuja: Then what's so ugly about it? Final Fantasy is beautiful without the Elephant Lady in it.

ZT:…You're mean you know that?

Kuja: I'm the villain of the game; the thought's crossed my mind.

ZT: You're hopeless…Ok well on with the show. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Review Responses:

CelticHero- Thanks. FF9 is one of my favorite games too. Who Usagi is going to be paired with is a secret for now ; p Here's the update!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 1

Space…it doesn't matter how long you travel through its vast reaches, you always find something new. The old are always dieing, making room for the birth of things new, whether they be mortal creatures or mortal ideas. Cosmos knew that well. She had no idea how long she had been fighting Chaos, trying to put her arch foe to rest, but she knew she had lost count at around ten millennia, and she was certain a few millennia had passed since then. Currently she was taking a rest, sitting on an asteroid on the outskirts of a fairly young galaxy. She was surprised when she came across it. The last time she had come through this area there wasn't anything here. Now she could see a planet forming in the distance. It surprised her though; the planet had developed fairly quickly...it looked like it could start bearing life withing a few thousand years when common sense said it should take billions of years...

Twirling a silver lock of hair with her index finger, she took her thoughts off the planet and let her mind start calculating how to attack Chaos in their next encounter. It was something that she had gotten accustomed to doing over the years in her free time. She had spent enough time mourning her lost scouts and the future that never came to pass. She even tired of laughing at the irony that she, former Usagi Tsukino, sports failure, the nemesis of Earth's educational system and klutz of the universe, had spent many of the beginning centuries as Cosmos educating herself, teaching herself grace and the art of wielding various forms of a blade in order to both survive and keep herself busy. Although she had to admit, laughing at the irony at that did take a while to get boring. Chaos still hadn't gotten over it last time she checked…

Frowning slightly, she looked up as she sensed something of possible danger coming her way. She saw it instantly. Another asteroid heading in the direction of the one she was on. She sighed and got to her feet. Usually she would just leave the asteroid and catch a ride on another one, but she was feeling lazy at the moment and didn't want to leave. Besides, she hadn't had a rendezvous with Chaos in awhile and preferred it when the bastard came to her. Closing her eyes, she called upon the power of one of the many star seeds that followed her command, summoning a white star shaped object with two wings coming out of the back and with a red orb in the center to her hand. She aimed it at the oncoming object, "Star! Serious! Laser!" A beam shot out of the star object and hit the asteroid, obliterating it. The attack was stronger than when Sailor Star Fighter had used it all those years ago, but then again, all her inherited attacks were; they had to be in order to leave a mark on Chaos.

Seeing that there were no more threats for the time being, Cosmos sat back down and waited for Chaos to figure out where the power surge came from and to come find her. Reaching into her subspace pocket, she pulled out a white ribbon and tied her hair loosely back. She no longer donned her old hairstyle of two buns with streamers for they were too tempting for Chaos to grab and swing her by. After the third time he had done so, she had chopped off her long hair so that it was at her mid-back. Actually, she had chopped off the streamers at about her shoulder in frustration during a battle and then afterwards when she took her hair down and evened out the ends it wound up being at her mid back. Not that she minded the outcome of her little temper tantrum though; she could move easier without all that extra weight on the top of her head and hanging behind her.

* * *

Two days passed before Cosmos sensed the power of her enemy coming her way. He had caught on quick this time. Standing up, she flexed her muscles and looked into the vast emptiness from where she sensed his presence. She guessed that it would be another three days before he made it to where she was. That was fine. It gave her time to warm up for the oncoming battle. The question was which weapon did she want to use against him this time…? The sword was becoming a little too cliché when fighting him as was the staff. She used the Silence Glaive against him in the last fight so she didn't want to use it again. She had yet to fully master the cat claws she had salvaged from an attacker's belongings, so it wouldn't be wise to fight him with them, especially since he would most likely be using his sword….again. That guy needed to learn how to use something else in her opinion, but she would never voice that suggestion to him, for he may just do so and she would have to recalculate him all over again.

She considered short swords for a moment. She had never used them against Chaos before, but she had been practicing with them and actually found herself to be quite decent at wielding them. She would even venture to say that she was good at using them. It would definitely throw Chaos off guard if she used those…Reaching into her subspace pocket, she pulled out two identical short swords which she had found amongst a previous attacker's belongings. The blades had caught her eye instantly when she saw them all those years ago. The blades themselves looked white and almost looked like they would light up a dark room if placed in there. The hilts were black with what looked like melted down amethyst coating the top of the hilt and trailing down onto the blade. Some of the purplish substance was forged into the blade itself forming runes on the blades' smooth surface. Curiosity of what the runes said had made her travel across many galaxies until she could find the land where the twin blades had originally come from. It turned out that the language on the blade was as old as the Moon Kingdom, and translated into two words: "Destiny's Wrath." Since the phrase was simple yet so powerful, Cosmos had taken a liking to the blades and named them after the phrase. It would be fitting if Chaos were to fall to them. After all, he made a fool of Destiny when he destroyed the peaceful future Destiny had planned. In retaliation, Destiny gave birth to a powerful new weapon, one meant to show Chaos exactly how it felt about him interfering with its plans, which was she.

Taking a deep breath, Cosmos summoned her white wings and took to the sky. There weren't any stray youma in the area and she didn't want to get that planet in the distance involved in a battle with Chaos and herself. So, she decided to warm up on the asteroids in the area. Sure it wasn't as good as actually fighting a living breathing creature, but being able to keep massive objects from colliding into her was still enough to get her blood pumping…

* * *

"Ha!" Cosmos opened the palm of her hand towards an oncoming asteroid, her aura building up in the palm and unleashing an invisible force which made the floating rock crumble. That made it the ninety-ninth asteroid she had taken out today. "Now which one gets to be lucky 100…?" she mused out loud, looking at the many asteroids in the area to choose from. One in particular caught her eye. It was much larger than the other ones, in fact it was about five times as big as any that she had seen in the area so far. She watched as other asteroids collided into it, but were too small to break the larger one apart. It was perfect. Gliding over with one flap of her wings, she got in the massive body's line of impact. She made a fist above her head, "World Shaking!" Unleashing the attack that once belonged to the Senshi of winds, Cosmos hit the asteroid dead in the center, making it break into multiple smaller, but still large, pieces. It did exactly what she expected it to do. She pointed in the direction of the oncoming rocks, "Crescent Beam Shower!" A golden light erupted from her index finger, splitting into multiple beams which his all the smaller pieces, obliterating them.

She sighed gently and inwardly smirked when she heard someone applaud from above her. "I must say Cosmos, you do know how to put on a show," said the person above her. He was dressed in black and gold armor, with black hair and dark eyes. A black cape hung loosely behind him, usually flowing in the slightest breeze, but this being space with a lack of air, it did nothing.

"I was wondering when you would show up," Cosmos said smoothly, looking up at him with a cool expression, "I was expecting you two days ago."

Chaos smirked in response, "I got some coffee along the way."

"Coffee hm? Is that why you always seem to have an energy crash right when the battle gets to be good?" she asked.

"No, just your untrained battle tactics and poor fighting abilities bore me to sleep," he replied. "Now, are we going to have a battle of words or swords my dear, because if it is the first, I have better things to do."

Cosmos smirked, "If this war between us were a battle of whits you would have lost long ago. You lack sufficient training in such fields."

"That's not what you said when we the first few times. If I recall correctly, you replied to my insults 'Stop it! You're so mean!!'" Chaos replied, mocking her old whining voice perfectly.

The silver haired scout rolled her eyes, "That was before I discovered you got all your lame insults from the clearance rack. After I found out your secret, that line switched from being said by me to being said by you."

"Do you ever wonder why we can insult each other like this for a good few hours without drawing blood?" Chaos changed the subject.

"Because we're the only people who we can reminisce with so we get it out before trying to kill one another," she answered with a shrug.

"I see…so are you done?"

"Yes. Are you?"

"Of course."

"Alright," she drew Destiny's Wrath out of sheaths strapped at her sides and got in a fighting stance, "Let's play then."

With a flap of her wings, Cosmos shot at Chaos with amazing speed, her two blades positioned to attack. She was parried by Chaos's sword when she got close enough, and he pushed her back, coming at her with a counter attack. She parried it before using one of the blades to make a swipe at her opponent while she used the other blade to keep blocking Chaos's sword the attack. He backed up when he realized the other blade was going to hit him and sent out a dark energy blast in her direction. She pointed her blade at the oncoming attack, "Eternal Moon Crystal Kiss!" Her own attack came from the tip of the blade, meeting Chaos's attack in the center, both attacks effectively canceling each other out. Quickly, she followed up with another attack, "Dead… Scream…" the attack that once belonged to her dear scout of time shot at Chaos. He only just managed to dodge since the light show from the two former attacks had just began to fade and that particular attack was whispered so he didn't hear her conjure it up. Growling, he conjured up his own spell and shot it at her, knowing that she wouldn't be able to see it through the still present light either.

The battle went on like this for some time. They would fight sword to short swords for awhile, then one would decide it might be safer to battle with magic when they almost get cut. Then they would both decide that magic was a bad idea since it would either hit them or the asteroids which would then fly at both of them in the form of small sharp pieces which they would have to destroy before continuing their battle and go back to using weapons.

It could have been a few hours or a few days, but either way, the two eventually got bored with battling each other and stopped their endless spew of attacks and faced each other. Looking at each other, they both made a silent agreement: one last attack to decide this battle. It was something that they would do when they realized that they were going nowhere fast in their battling; they each unleash their most powerful attacks at each other to try to take the other down for good. It never really did anything, just knocked each other across a galaxy in the opposite direction and the one who was overpowered was usually unconscious for a year or two, but it was still worth a shot. Fiery auras grew around the two combatants, Cosmos's being a brilliant white while Chaos's was blood red. The two auras radiated amazing power, however they contrasted so much and were so close in strength that anyone who sensed them would be unable to tell if the aura was good or bad.

That's what had made him curious.

Both stopped mid attack when a noise caught their attention. Was that…moaning? "A bit of a morbid attack for your taste, isn't it Cosmos?" Chaos raised an eyebrow, thinking that this was part of a new spell she was conjuring.

Cosmos looked at her dark nemesis, "This isn't your doing?"

Both stared at each other, knowing each other far too long and well to know that neither was lying; something else had joined this battle. With a slight nod, both decided on a momentary truce until they found the new arrival and dealt with it.

Chaos was the first to feel it; the foreboding presence that felt like everything yet nothing in the same instant. "Show yourself!" he demanded, getting in a battle ready stance. Cosmos followed suit, now being able to pinpoint the area where the presence was coming from herself.

The creature obeyed. What came out, the two could only describe as an enormous, blue…thing. It looked like a blue giant with two strange looking wings coming from its back. There were large rings surrounding its body that were both floating and spinning.

"Who are you?" Cosmos growled, her eyes narrowing as she dismissed her short swords and summoned her staff.

"On that note, _what_ are you?" Chaos added, studying the creature before him.

The creature's lips did not move, nor did a sound other than the moaning which seemed to be radiating from its aura come from it. But the two still heard the creature as clear as day in their minds. _I have come to see the origin of the power that can be felt from within the zero world._

"That would most likely be our battle…" Chaos answered warily.

_Your battle?_ the creature questioned.

"We are Chaos and Cosmos. Our fight against one another has lasted for thousands of years. Often our fights get severe enough to be felt from a distance," Cosmos responded, equally as wary as Chaos. She didn't know about her temporary partner/normally nemesis, but she highly doubted that this creature came all this way just to see what was fighting.

_The two of you have been fighting for millennia? Why is that?_

"Chaos has destroyed my comrades, my family, my home, even the person I used to be. The only way to prevent him from making others suffer like I have is to destroy him and the minions he creates," Cosmos answered, not even caring that Chaos was standing next to her when she said this. He had heard it before anyway.

"And as for me, I just like destroying things," Chaos answered simply.

_So then, between the both of you, you wish for the death of everything?_

The two shared a quick glance. They hadn't thought about it, but yes. Cosmos wanted to destroy Chaos and his minions, Chaos wanted to destroy all that Cosmos protected which was pretty much everything not under his control. "…Yes, I guess that's right," Chaos answered.

The creature was then silent. Its face didn't look like it could move to make an expression, but if it could, the two figured that the creature would look like it was in deep thought. _...Then the two of you have answered a question that has been bothering me since the beginning of mankind._

Neither liked the sound of that. "And that would be…?" Cosmos asked, tightening her grip on her staff as she unconsciously prepared her body for an attack after it slacked a little during their talk with "big blue" as she was thinking about calling him.

_Ever since its birth, mankind has fought constantly, trying to destroy those who can bring upon them the one force that they fear the most…_ 'Death,' Chaos and Cosmos thought in unison, not strangers to this piece of information. _The darkness and suffering created by these emotions is what created my world and me, The Darkness of Eternity._ The two glanced at each other again; Cosmos's a little accusing at the dark armor-clad man next to her. He was Chaos after all… _Mankind desires a world where there is no fear. The two of you and your followers will always live with that fear until the other side has been destroyed, meaning that the only way to eradicate fear is to bring about the destruction of everything._

"Now hold on a minute! That's not what we said!" Chaos tried to interject. Sure he was usually the one trying to destroy the universe, but he was never on his own destruction list.

Cosmos laughed, "Do you honestly believe that the universe will accept that? I really think you're taking mankind's will to live for granted."

_Perhaps, but soon the two of you will choose destruction over existence…_ the creature replied, the rings around it spinning faster as it obviously charged up an attack.

Chaos and Cosmos took this as a sign to attack, dashing forward at full speed. As they neared their target, the two couldn't help but wonder why the creature didn't move as they came within striking range of him. The answer came quicker than they expected. _Neutron ring._ Both were thrown back by the sudden expel of power from the creature.

Cosmos managed to land on one of the larger asteroids which she hadn't destroyed in her warm up. She felt herself wanting to groan; whatever he just hit her with packed a punch! However before she could even scan the area to find where Chaos had landed, she heard "big blue" call out another attack. The words "Grand Cross" echoed through her mind as she suddenly found herself unable to move. What was going on? She mentally screamed at her body to move, but realized that the spell this creature was using must have had a similar effect on her like her old attacks had on her enemies. In other words, she was stuck having to stand there and watch whatever pretty light show was about to come her way. Unable to think of anything else to do at the moment, she concentrated all her power inward to put up a defense around herself for whatever he threw at her. There was a bright flash a minute later and she could feel foreign energy coursing through her body, trying to do something.

Luckily, her own power managed to keep whatever it was at bay. She swayed on her feet for a second, feeling slightly drained from protecting herself from the attack. Apparently it had taken more power than she expected to ward off the creature's attack. As she regained her balance and prepared to retaliate against the creature, she saw something that made her stare in shock, "Chaos?" There was no doubt that what she was looking at was Chaos, however, there was something different about him from a few minutes before: he had been turned to stone. 'W-What was that attack?!' Cosmos found herself wondering. She had been trying to destroy Chaos for years, and that creature used two attacks to bring the bastard down??! She immediately turned her attention back to "big blue". Although she loved the fact that Chaos was currently a statue, she didn't want this creature to turn her into one as well. Narrowing her eyes, the staff in her hands began to glow, "Well, I _had_ been saving this for Chaos, but since you've killed him, I think you can have it instead." The glow suddenly brightened ten fold in strength and spread beyond just the staff to Cosmos's whole being, "Go back to the hell where you came from! COSMIC DESTRUCTION!!"

The creature pulled its wings around itself as the attack came and tried to retreat to the Zero World. However, it did get hit by part of the attack. _This is not over yet…_ Cosmos heard it echo in her mind, _I am eternal…_ With a sigh she looked over at the statue of Chaos which was now floating off into space. Just her luck; one enemy falls, and another comes to replace him…Feeling exhausted from the battle, Cosmos dismissed her staff. She would go after the blue guy after she had a rest...

She passed out immediately afterwards.

* * *

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	3. Chapter 3

ZT: Hey everyone. Hope you all like the story so far. Here's chapter two. I own nothing except the computer I wrote this on. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 2

She could hear voices. Where they were coming from she couldn't tell, but she knew that they were nearby.

"Think she's dead, kupo?"

"She can't be dead! Look, she's still breathing!"

"But that that was a big fall kupo!"

"I know, kupo. But she looks like she isn't that hurt by it. Look, kupo, she doesn't even have a scratch."

Cosmos groaned feeling the throbbing in her head as her other senses started coming back to her. But whether her head hurt from her apparent fall or from the constant repetition of "kupo" from those who found her was a mystery to her. She forced her eyes open and had to shut them again as she was greeted by blinding sunlight.

"Kupo kupo! She's waking up Kupo!"

Cosmos heard a bunch of people start talking at once, however the majority of what they said was that annoying "kupo" noise. She opened her eyes again to see a bunch of short pink…things with orange pompoms on their heads staring down at her. They were still making the "kupo" noise and as she slowly sat up, she found a bunch more in the area running around, obviously trying to find some way to help, but in too much of a panic to do anything. 'If this whole planet's population is made up of these things, I'll save Chaos the trouble and blow it up myself,' she thought, figuring that the headache was from the "kupos" since her headache grew with each passing sound. It took her a moment to remember that Chaos was now officially a very weird looking space rock, but she considered saving him the trouble and blowing up the planet anyway.

"Are you alright, kupo?" asked one of the pink things near her. The kupo fest had died down for the moment so she could make out what he said.

"I think so…" she replied, mentally checking her body over. Other than the headache, she was fine. She scanned the area, finding herself on a flatland with what looked like the ruins of some ancient city to her right. "Where is this?" she wondered aloud.

"Kupo! That's Madain Sahari, kupo," another of the creatures answered. "We live there!"

'Then I for one shall not be staying there…' Cosmos deciding, knowing full well that if she stayed with these things too long, she may start saying "kupo" herself. She slowly got to her feet and noticed something a bit painful: she was standing on her hair. 'Ow! Geez!' she moved her feet a little to get off the now extremely long locks of hair. In fact about six inches of it was pooling on the ground behind her. 'How long have I been asleep if my hair grew out that much??' she wondered, making a note to cut her hair again later, but for the moment just put it up in her old heart shaped buns with streamers. It was still down to her ankles, but at least it wasn't dragging on the ground anymore. Once that was done, she checked her wings with more care than she had the rest of her body. If she broke an arm it wasn't a big deal, but her wings were her mode of transportation; she wanted to make sure they weren't seriously damaged.

The little pink things, which are more commonly known as moogles, looked at her with mixed feelings of awe and fear. On the one hand she reminded them of an angel and seemed to have an ethereal aura around her being which had made them think that she was some sort of Eidolon. However, the fact that she had silver hair, and pale skin made them wary. For they only knew of one other who had those features.

Finally, one of the braver moogles spoke up, "Um, excuse me, kupo."

"Hm?" Cosmos made a sound that signaled that she was listening even though she was still looking over her wings.

"You…aren't related to Kuja, are you?" the same moogle asked meekly.

"Kuja? Never heard of him." Apparently she had said the right thing because all the little pink things had let out a collection of sighs when she said that.

There was a moment of silence before another bold moogle stepped forward, "How can you not know Kuja?"

Cosmos shrugged, "I'm not from around here…"

"Kuja threatened to destroy all Gaia kupo! How do you not know this?? He's the one who threw the whole Mist Continent into a war and processed the souls in the Iifa tree! Kupo!" another exclaimed in disbelief.

"He destroyed his home world when he learned that he was dying!" another added.

"And he threatened the life of Miss Eiko kupo!" exclaimed another. This got the whole kupo fest started again as all the moogles gave their angry comments about the last part. Apparently they thought very high of this Miss Eiko person…

However, Cosmos was interested in other matters at hand. For one, how long had she been unconscious? She knew these little pink things wouldn't know since they just found her, but she figured she might be able to figure it out if she explored some other areas…Plus she wanted to know if this world knew anything about "big blue".

But first she wanted to know if she was stuck having to talk to pink creatures with orange pompoms or not. "You spoke of a 'Mist Continent"…are there many civilizations there?" her question was addressed to all the moogles since she couldn't really tell the difference between them enough to figure out who had asked which questions.

The moogles stopped rambling when she spoke. "Yeah, that's where all the major civilizations are, kupo," one answered.

Cosmos nodded in comprehension, "And in which general direction will I find this continent?"

"It's south of here kupo," one replied. "Kupo! But there's no form of transportation around here to get to it, kupo!" another piped up.

Cosmos laughed at the comment. "You have wings; do you think that these are just for show?" she asked, moving her own wings to emphasize that she was talking about them. "Thanks for waking me up, but I must be off. Ta ta," with a flap of her wings, she was lifted off the ground and into the air, heading south towards the Mist continent.

As she flew, something to the west caught her attention. Never in her life had she seen a tree so immense! It was nearly dead now, but she could still feel the essence of star seeds which the tree had once held in it. "So that's the Iifa tree…" she thought to herself. It gave her chills to think that someone here used to have the ability to take souls out of their normal flow like that and store it in this thing…it reminded her too much of Chaos when he had possessed Galaxia. Although Galaxia had stored the star seeds she had taken in a crystal, not a tree…She shook her head and resumed her flight, wanting to get to the Mist Continent as soon as possible.

Had she watched the tree a little longer, she would have notice the slight twitch of the roots as one whose soul still slept within his creation was awakened by such a presence being in the vicinity. _So, she has finally come…_

* * *

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	4. Chapter 4

ZT: Hey everyone! Here's chapter three for ya. Hehe, bet your wondering who it was who Cosmos accidentally woke up.

Kuja: Not really.

ZT: I wasn't talking to you.

Kuja: So?

ZT: …You're evil.

Kuja: Again, I'm a villain. I'm supposed to be evil.

ZT: Why me…? On with the show. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Review responses:

CelticHero- Glad you like it so far. Here's the update.

A person writing a review- Apollo or his son? Hmm, 'tis possible… No, the scouts aren't going to be reincarnated. I thought about it but then decided against it at the last minute. Anyway, here's the update.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 3

Cosmos flew for half a day over the ocean before she came across what she figured was the Mist Continent. It was lush and green and covered in mountains from what she could see. But at the same time, she had only just started flying over land. As she flew over a mountain, she stopped short as she came upon a sort of plateau on the other side of it. On this plateau was a small city with a large white castle in the center. What had caught her attention was the fact that the castle looked like it had a massive sword sticking out of the top of it.

'Interesting taste in architecture…' she thought, landing softly some distance from the kingdom and dismissing her wings. She didn't know how well they would take to the silver sailor fuku as it was; she didn't want them freaking out if she had wings as well. She walked towards the city at a steady pace, letting her legs get used to the feel of gravity again. She always had to do this when she was out in space for a long time; she would need to allow her body time to adjust to gravity again. She would have taken this piece of information to estimate the amount of time she had been floating out in space had it not been for the fact that she had been hanging out in space for awhile before she faced off with Chaos and "big blue" anyway.

As she walked, Cosmos began to get the sinking suspicion that she was being watched. She continued to walk, but kept her guard up and listened. Yes, something was following her. Something big that growled. Keeping at her same pace, Cosmos quietly summoned the Sword of Artemis and waited for the creature that was behind her to get closer. Once she figured it was close enough, she turned ready to attack her follower. What she found herself facing was a creature that looked like a huge white dog with one seriously messed up face. The natives called it a Bandersnatch. Seeing that it wanted to attack, Cosmos struck, taking the beast down with one slice of her blade. She backed away as the beast fell to the ground. She expected the beast to go down easy; the Sword of Artemis was a powerful blade after all. What she wasn't expecting was for the beast to evaporate once it stopped breathing, leaving some items and money in its place. "Well that's new…" Cosmos said to herself, walking over to the items left behind. Aside from the money there was a bottle full of liquid and a feather. "What sort of dog leaves a feather behind?" she wondered, putting the items in her subspace pocket before continuing on her way to the castle.

She was attacked three more times by the same kind of creature before she reached the castle, each time taking it down with ease and each time getting similar results of the creature evaporating and leaving items behind. 'I still don't get the feathers though…' she thought as she entered the city, dismissing her sword right before she entered.

* * *

The moment Cosmos stepped into the city the comments from the moogles of her looking like the enemy of this planet came rushing back to her. She had noticed all too well how the guards watching who came and left the city backed away as she passed through the gates, as if they were terrified of her. As she continued walking, she noted how practically everyone she passed stopped and looked at her. This was not something new; a silver haired woman walking around in a silver fuku, usually with a weapon or a big staff with an eight pointed star at the top was bound to get curious looks when she entered someplace. However, she was never compared to someone all those other times. She caught pieces of conversations from some people as she walked, all of them saying "Kuja" this or "Kuja" that. She didn't like it; it was bad enough that she apparently shared a resemblance to someone here, but did it have to be a bad guy? Talk about destroying your reputation before you even have one!

'This is gonna be one long day…' she thought, using every ounce of her willpower not to groan at the thought. As soon as the thought crossed her mind, she heard the sound of running footsteps in her direction along with voices. 'Guards,' she thought, moving swiftly and quietly into the shadows of a building. She watched quietly as a bunch of men came into the street where she used to be, being led by a man wearing armor. She raised an eyebrow; the armor was completely rusted and looked like it may just be older than she was… She watched as one of the knights who had run off a second ago ran up to the rusty armored man and saluted, "Captain, there is no sign of the suspect in the area."

"Well then, look in another area," the Captain had replied, sounding exasperated.

The soldier saluted and turned to leave before stopping, "Um…Captain?"

The Captain, who had turned to speak with another soldier turned to him, "Yes?"

"Who are we looking for again?" There was a collection of agreements through the squad, making Cosmos want to laugh, especially when the Captain started jumping up and down angrily, his armor clanking as he yelled at the ones in front of him and told them to find someone who looks like Kuja. After yelling that, then having to answer a few more questions, the knights took off.

Shaking her head at the scene, she quickly slipped into a nearby alleyway unnoticed. It looked like she wasn't going to find anything in this city…not as she was now at least. Sighing, she walked deeper into the alley, hoping that at the end of it there might be an empty place for her to fly out of. As she walked, she noticed some stairs that led down to something. It looked like a theater of sorts. Standing outside against the wall were two roguish looking men. Immediately her mind flashed with recognition of the two being thieves as she walked past them, her body slightly tensed so that if either of them tried to nab something off of her she would be ready to retaliate.

They didn't do anything though to her relief. Actually, they had been afraid to. They saw the look in her eyes when she walked past, the look that said "I'm not afraid to take you if you try something." They had a lady friend with eyes like that and, well, they tried to stay on her good side as much as possible… The two watched her walk further down the alley as someone else came her way. He had eight arms and seemed to be minding his own business. The two knew better though. "Should we warn her?" one wearing a blue outfit asked his leather clad friend. "Nah, I don't think we want to get involved in that," the one in leather responded. Sure enough, two seconds later the eight armed man yelped in surprise as Cosmos flipped him around and slammed him face first into the closest wall before stomping away. Yep, they definitely didn't want to get involved in that…

* * *

Cosmos let out a sigh as she flew over the Mist Continent again. She had managed to find a fairly empty area on the other side of the ally. By fairly empty she meant that there were no people but there were three more of those pink "kupo" chirping things with the orange pompoms, which she had just been informed were called moogles. After talking with the three a moment, she guessed they weren't that bad…they were sort of the mailmen of Gaia, and had very helpful information. They had even told her what the vile of liquid and the feathers were, which she found out were also called a potion and phoenix down. Apparently the monsters evaporated because they were made of mist. Once they were destroyed they turned back into mist and faded away leaving the items which they had gotten off of innocent victims before. She guessed that would come in handy if someone had run out of medical supplies while killing one of those creatures; the creature would die and leave something to give you a hand in healing from the beating it gave you while you're at it.

She had been flying southwest for a while when a familiar sound reached her ear. The Bandersnatches she faced earlier may have been a creature solely found on Gaia, but dragons could be found pretty much everywhere! She landed on the side of a mountain as she watched the battle taking place down a few feet below her. There were four people fighting against a green dragon on a cliff.

She studied the people. It looked like it was a group of two children and two adults. One of the adults was in a red-orange outfit of sorts and was fighting with a lance. What had caught her attention about this person was the fact that she looked like she was a rat-woman. The other adult was large and muscular with tight rippling muscles. His red hair contrasted greatly with his blue skin but at the same time seemed to fit him. He had on a black outfit and had a mean looking claw weapon on his arm. One of the children she couldn't make out his facial features since they were hidden under a large floppy hat and a blue coat. All she could tell was that he had bright yellow orbs for eyes that were glowing from underneath the hat. He had a staff in hand which made Cosmos think that maybe perhaps he was a spell caster. The last of the group was a little girl in a yellow dress. She had a headful of purple hair with a horn sticking out from her forehead. In her hands was a flute, but what exactly she could do with that, the silver soldier did not know.

She watched as physical and magical attacks flew back and forth, both the dragon and the group taking damage. She kept a good eye on the magical attacks that the two children cast. The boy was casting elemental spells, and she noticed that the dragon would cast the same type of spells. She made a mental note to alter the scout attacks she had to make it seem less obvious that she wasn't from around here if she needed to use any magic. She also watched the adults. They didn't use magic, but they used skills that they seemed to be unique to themselves. That would be a good to know if she needed to use one of her own abilities without giving herself away…she also noted that the attacks weren't that powerful...she could have used her sword to take down the dragon in one hit, but they had to continue attacking over and over again.

She watched as the battle lasted a little longer before the dragon finally roared in pain and collapsed, turning into mist. 'That was certainly helpful…' she thought, now knowing how to cover up her battling style so that she seemed less suspicious. She was about to fly away when something caught her attention. Another dragon was heading towards the group. She looked down at the four; they were busy giving each other potions and ethers to notice the dragon coming at them. And if they weren't fully healed, she was sure that electric attack, Thundaga, she thought they called it, might kill them. Seeing that big green and scaly was about to attack, she came to a decision. Word was bound to get out that there was a "Kuja look alike" around here, so what did it matter if she used her actual abilities looking like this? Summoning the Sword of Artemis, she flew into the air and dove at the dragon.

* * *

Freya nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard a dragon scream right behind her. She whirled around and had to look twice. A white winged, silver haired woman had just brought her sword down on the grand dragon which was about to back attack the group, killing it with one strike. However, just as quickly as the woman came, she flew off.

"What was that about?" Eiko asked, having caught the scene herself.

Freya shook her head, "I'm not sure. Let's head back; we may want to tell the others about this."

* * *

Cosmos landed as she neared a massive castle. From what the moogles in the other city, Alexandria they called it, had told her this was Lindblum. Apparently it was the most technologically advanced city on all of Gaia. Taking on look at it, she suspected that it was still centuries behind what she had seen on other planets, but still livable.

A humming sound could be heard from above her and she looked up. A small gasp escaped her lips. When she heard the term "airship" she figured it was some sort of plane. She wasn't expecting to see actual ships flying through the air! "This looks like something right out of a story book," she breathed, looking at the ships flying high above her head and into the castle.

She looked at the entrance and took a step towards it before she stopped, remembering the nice welcome she had gotten in Alexandria. A small frown formed on her lips. She would have to change her appearance some if she wanted to get around easier. She knew that first off she would have to get rid of the sailor fuku; from what she saw, it just stood out too much. Also, she remembered someone in Alexandria mention something about silver hair. That would have to go too it seemed. Someone had said that Kuja was pale, meaning that she should go for a more fleshy tone than what she had right now. Also, she would have to loose the buns and streamers again; they just stood out too much.

Fingering her brooch, she de-transformed; something she hadn't done in a long time. Looking down she noted that many of those changes she had just considered making happened. Her skin tone wasn't as pale anymore and her hair looked like it was spun of gold rather than platinum. Her outfit was one that she had gotten a few millennia back during the last time she went out of her Cosmos form. It consisted of black pants, boots, and a fitting, sleeveless, black button up top. She had a purple scarf wrapped around her waist in the form of a belt and black fingerless gloves which had a moon and a star stitched on the back hand of each glove in the same color as the scarf. 'Now there's just one more thing to do…' she thought, bringing out Destiny's Wrath. Undoing her buns, she looked back at the golden strands, pooling behind her on the ground. She had forgotten how much she liked her long hair…With one sad glance, she sliced them off, leaving her with mid-back length hair.

She was about to dismiss Destiny's Wrath when a thought occurred to her: if this place was anything like the other parts of the continent she had seen, it would be crawling with monsters. Perhaps she should hold onto the short swords; they matched her outfit and she figured that they would be less noticeable than a stone sword which could cut diamonds…pulling the sheaths out of her subspace pocket, she put Destiny's wrath away and strapped the sheaths around her waist, tucking them under the scarf to make it less noticeable. Looking herself over, she decided she liked what she saw and started walking towards Lindblum.

* * *

Elsewhere, hidden deep beneath massive roots, the small amount of life that the once proud tree still had was busy at work, still trying to obey the commands of its master even if it meant completely destroying itself in the process. As it finished its job, two groans were heard. One was from the tree as the last of its life left it. The other was from a silver haired man who felt the life re-enter his body after having been at rest for so long.

Dark eyes opened tiredly as the man looked at his surroundings. "I…am alive?" he sat up, looking over his body. His clothes which he knew had been tattered and torn during his last battle looked as good as new, and all the wounds that had been inflicted on his body were gone. "How is this possible…?" he wondered aloud, getting to his feet and looking up. He had been quite positive that he had died when the Iifa tree struck his younger brother and himself, and judging from how far he must have fallen afterwards, he concluded that there would have been no way for him to survive, especially with his body having been as battered as it was already. So how was he standing here then?

As if to answer his question, a very familiar voice suddenly spoke to him in his mind. _Welcome back to the living, Kuja._

* * *

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	5. Chapter 5

ZT: Hey everyone! Woohoo! Now we have some Final fantasy characters in here!

FF9 cast: (Unenthusiastically waving little flags) Yay……

ZT: They really love me; they just don't like to show it. (Sweatdrop) Well, on with the show! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Review Responses:

A person writing a review- Actually, Kuja didn't survive; he was brought back by someone. It's explained in this chapter more. And the new enemy isn't exactly a stranger to everyone. It's just a new enemy to Cosmos.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 4

Kuja glared at nothing in particular when he heard the familiar voice, "Garland!"

_I see you remember me my Angel of Death,_ came the reply from the ancient wizard who obviously refused to just stay in his grave.

"If I recall correctly, I am not your Angel anymore, not since Zidane came of age," the silver haired man scoffed, brushing a lock of hair out of his face.

_That may have been the original plan…_ Garland replied, _However, I don't need to tell you how my new Angel has failed me miserably._

"And so now you have come back to me, asking your 'Defective genome' to do your dirty work once again?" Kuja asked smugly, though there was a tinge of sarcasm in his voice as well.

_It is not a request, it is an order_, Garland replied bluntly.

This caused the silver haired Genome to laugh, "Well if Master Garland orders it…I still say piss off." Kuja's face turned serious, "Why would I follow your command? You turned your back on me by making a replacement for me, made it so that I would die before I would truly have a chance to live! I was nothing but a puppet to you. Besides, if you had been there in my last few minutes of life when I talked with Zidane, it wouldn't be very surprising that I have no intention of starting another war, especially not for you."

_You are indebted to me Kuja, and I do not wish for you to start a war_, Garland said calmly.

"Then what _do_ you want?" Kuja asked warily.

_I gave you back life, I want you to return the favor_, came the answer.

Kuja shook his head, "You honestly think I'll bring you back to life? Even if I had the ability to do such a thing, I would die before helping you." With that, he turned to see if he could find a way out of his prison.

_I suspected that you would say that, which is why I made sure that your life still had a limit…_ Kuja stopped dead in his tracks. _Kuja, in order to truly come back as I once was, I need the power of one being, one who has power that could put all that you have witnessed to shame. With that power, I can take away the limit on your life. Think about it, you can live as ruler of you eternal kingdom, just as you wanted to…_

"Keyword 'wanted'" Kuja cut in, "I don't want that anymore. I just want to live…but not at the expense of another!" Kuja forced himself to yell the last part. Garland's offer was tempting, but he wouldn't do it, he couldn't! He would not allow himself to become the monster he was before he fell. If it meant he was to die here, right after he was brought back, then so be it; he would never be accepted on Gaia anyway, not after what he had done. And going back to Terra was a no-go since he kinda destroyed it…

He could hear Garland chuckle, something that unnerved him; Garland never chuckled, which meant that the old wizard was planning something. _Very well, if you refuse to help, then I shall take the life I have just given to you to make myself a temporary body, then I shall find the one possessing the power I need myself._

Kuja felt his blood run cold. By the time that he had been defeated by Zidane and his friends, Garland had grown considerably weak compared to how he used to be. In fact he had been losing it even before Kuja was created, but the silver haired genome remembered seeing a glimpse of that power when he was still young, before Garland's power started dropping exponentially. If he regained his true powers, Gaia would be done for.

His eyes trained on the ground a little bit away from him as he weighed his options. He could refuse Garland, but Garland would just kill him and get what he wanted anyway. In his full power, Garland would destroy everyone with ease unless there was one hell of a miracle, like a god coming down to smite the wizard… Kuja thought about his other options. If he were to do Garland's bidding, then perhaps with his help Gaia could have a chance in standing up to Garland. Sure he would die because he turned against his creator, but he had a feeling the Garland would kill him regardless. Or, he could find the person Garland wanted and kill him before Garland could put the person's power to use; making sure that the wizard never came back. Or, he could take the coward's way out and just do what Garland wanted, no strings attached, and hope that Garland was keeping his word about letting Kuja live…

Kuja debated for a few more minutes with himself before sighing, "Where can I find this person?"

* * *

Cosmos mentally let out a sigh of relief as she noticed that she received very few stares compared to the last time she entered a city. Apparently her new look worked like a charm. Nobody pointed her out as a foreigner so she walked around the massive city with ease. Or at least she walked around without many eyes on her…Lindblum was HUGE and she found herself constantly getting lost. 'How ironic…'she thought, 'I can tell someone directions to a specific planet which is on the other side of the universe, yet I can't find my way around one city!'

After wandering around some, she managed to find some sort of air cab thing which led to various districts. Once she discovered where these stations were, traveling around was much easier. She searched everywhere in the town, hoping to find something, whether it be a book or a mural or an old storyteller, which might tell her a thing or two about the blue creature, but in the end found nothing. "What sort of major city doesn't have a library?" she wondered aloud as she walked through a district which was under construction. According to some of the workers in the area, this was the Industrial district and was still being rebuilt after having been destroyed in the war a little over a year ago.

As she walked, Cosmos couldn't help but wonder what sort of weapon on this planet would have enough strength to completely obliterate a fraction of such a large city. She could name quite a few weapons and spells that didn't exist on this planet that could probably do the trick, but from what she had seen so far, there was nothing that originated on this planet that could do that type of damage. It made her curious about the secrets Gaia held. She slowed her pace as she noticed that she was walking past what looked like a bar/diner of sorts. Glancing at the outside menu, she concluded that she had no clue what was being served inside, which was a good thing since she had a feeling that her stomach hadn't gotten used to gravity yet. However, she was thirsty, and she didn't think that water would leave her bowing to a porcelain god, so she walked inside.

Looking around, she found a seat at the bar and sat down. A portly but good natured looking man behind the counter walked up to her, "What can I get you miss?"

"Just water," she answered casually.

As she spoke, she caught the attention of another in at the bar who shook his head, "Nah, pops get her the special too, I'll pay."

Cosmos looked over at the one who said that, "That's not necessary…"

He grinned at her, "Well a pretty girl can't walk into the best diner in Lindblum and expect to get away with just getting water on my watch."

She raised an eyebrow at his comment, having a feeling that he was planning on hitting on her. The bartender broke the silence for her though, "Don't think flattering my cooking will get you a discount."

The boy laughed, "Can't blame me for trying…"

Cosmos found herself smirking at the comment. "You do this often?"

"Yeah, on good days he'll give me a free lunch, and if it doesn't work then I just pay what I would anyways. So it's worth a shot anyways," he replied, rubbing the back of his head as he did.

"I see. So how many free meals have you gotten so far?" she asked.

He thought about it for a moment, crossing his arms over his chest and looking down at the bar in front of him, "Hm…I'd say…" he shook his head and laughed a little, "A lot. I got a lot more when I was a kid than I do now though."

She laughed lightly, "Cute factor huh?"

"Yeah, no one could resist big blue eyes and a tail back then," he replied with an impish grin, his tail swishing behind him as he did.

"I know that one; I used to have a unique hairstyle which added to the cute factor when I was younger. I could get away with murder if I wanted to," she commented.

"Same here," he laughed as the bartender brought them both out the special, Soup de Silence. He lifted his cup up to her as if in a toast, "To getting away with murder!"

She laughed and raised her cup as well, "To getting away with murder." With that they began to drink their soups. Cosmos discovered that the soup actually tasted quite good, but had a feeling that she was going to regret eating it later…

* * *

She was right.

Cosmos silently cursed as she emptied the contents of her stomach in the nearest trashcan. Why did her stomach have to take so long to settle after traveling in space? It was humiliating having to stick her head in a trashcan like that after having her first meal on a planet! Did her stomach forget that she was the food scarfing queen back on Earth? It should have been the _first_ thing to adjust when she went to a new planet for that reason alone! Usagi Tsukino not being able to eat was like, well, Usagi Tsukino not being able to eat!

She groaned slightly as she tried to clear her fuzzy mind. At least she had managed to find an empty part of the town; it would be humiliating if someone found her like this!

Well, that thought was shot down pretty quick when her hearing picked up the sound of footsteps on cobblestone streets. _Darn it! Why me..?_ she thought with a groan as she realized that the footsteps suddenly came faster and were heading her way. She hated it when people saw her in a state like this!

The footsteps stopped right behind her. This was so pathetic; she couldn't even turn around to find out who was coming at her. It could be a mugger for all she knew and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Hey, are you alright?" she heard the person behind her ask. It took a moment for her foggy brain to register that she recognized the voice; it belonged to that kid she met earlier.

"I'm gonna kill whoever invented gravity…" she grumbled, sticking her head in the trashcan again.

'So _that's_ why she only wanted water,' he realized, putting a hand on her back and rubbing it gently. It had taken his brothers and himself some time to realize that they should wait and make sure they had their land legs back before doing anything, so he knew how she must have felt at the moment. She must have just gotten off of an airship and was trying to get used to walking on land again when she found the bar.

He waited patiently, continuously rubbing her back in a comforting manner until she got it under control. "Do you have someplace to stay tonight? I'll walk you there if you want," he offered.

Cosmos shook her head, still leaning over the trashcan, "I'll be fine…"

The man narrowed his eyes slightly. He could see right through her. "You don't have a place to stay, do you?"

"I'm used to camping out," she answered, finally managing to pull herself together to at least some extent. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the man's tail swishing from side to side like Luna's used to do when she was annoyed at her charge.

"Come on," he said, taking her gently by the shoulders, "You can sleep at my place."

Cosmos was surprised by the man's decision and felt a little torn. Part of her, the common sense part, said that he was a stranger and not to trust him. But another part of her said it was ok, this guy wasn't bad. "It really ok, I can take care of myself," she tried to tell him.

But he was stubborn, "Don't try to get out of this. You don't have a place to stay, you just tossed all your cookies, and there's an extra room where I live that you can have for tonight at least. Besides…" he looked at her a bit sheepish, "I'm the one who bought you that soup to begin with. It'll ease my guilty conscience if I knew you were ok tonight."

Cosmos wanted to argue, but every time she looked at him, she saw big innocent blue eyes staring back at her. She sighed, "That bartender still has to deal with the cute factor doesn't he?"

The man laughed, taking this as a sign of resignation on her part, "Pretty much, yeah." He smiled at her, "The name's Zidane, by the way."

She returned a weak smile, "Serenity."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	6. Chapter 6

ZT: Hey everyone! Well, now Cosmos has met Zidane and Kuja may be up to something.

Kuja: "May"?

ZT: Alright, so you ARE up to something.

Kuja: That's better.

ZT: Anyways…on with the show! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Review responses:

CelticHero- Yeah, who Garland wants was a bit obvious. I feel sorry for her, but with that silver crystal and being a reincarnated moon princess who is now a soldier for love and justice, she can't help but draw attention to herself. Here's the update.

A person writing a review- I haven't found any smff9 x-overs either; there certainly aren't any on this website that I've found. Here's the update!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 5

Serenity blinked in surprise a moment when she realized she was in a very familiar place. 'When did I return to the Moon Kingdom..?' she wondered, looking at the area around her. As she did, she took notice of something; the kingdom was still in one piece and glowed with life. 'I suppose this is one of my past memories…' she guessed the fact that she was in princess form and seemed to have no control of her body at the moment proved that.

Following her feet which seemed to have a destination in mind, Serenity found herself walking through a part of the castle which she had never been to before. Well, not that she could remember going through at least… She stopped halfway down the hall and found her eyes staring at a half opened door at the end of it. A smile tugged at her lips, though she could not imagine why, as she slipped off her shoes. 'Either I'm not supposed to go in there or I'm sneaking up on someone,' she thought as she realized that she had taken off her shoes so that no one would hear the clack of her shoes on the hard floor as she headed towards the opened door.

Glancing inside, she saw a figure with his back to her, sitting on a cushion in the center of the room. She couldn't make out his features too well, however the other person in the room she recognized instantly. She found herself glad that she wasn't in control of her body at the moment; otherwise she would have shocked the two occupants in the room by either breaking down right then and there, or by throwing herself at the Martian princess. 'By the gods Rei, you look just like I remember you…' she thought, her mind crying even though she could feel a hardly retained smile on her lips as the senshi of fire took notice of her.

She saw Rei smile at her in return and glance at the still meditating figure before silently moving over to her princess. "I'll cover for you just so long as you ask him not to hog the meditation mat. I've been waiting for hours!" the heart wrenchingly familiar voice whispered in her ear. She felt her mouth twist into a grin as she nodded in agreement. After receiving the nod, Rei quietly left the room much to Cosmos's both relief and disappointment. On the one hand, the out of sight, out of mind thought process hit her. But on the other hand, she wished she could have seen her senshi for just a little longer than that, since she knew that might very well be the last time she ever saw her…

Serenity was jogged from her thoughts when she felt herself start moving again. She found her attention focused on the last remaining person in the room. She noted how she took extra care not to make a noise as she approached the person, even making sure that her gown didn't rustle as she moved over to in front of him. As she looked down, Serenity let out a groan in her mind, she couldn't see his face, only his clothing!

'Didn't this happen before…?' she asked herself as she sat down in front of him, obviously waiting for him to notice her. She thought about it for a few minutes, but then it came back to her. Yes, she had a dream right before the fiasco with Galaxia happened where she couldn't see the occupants' faces. Wasn't one of the two she met a priest? Maybe this was his him. Now what was his name again…?

Well, she would figure out in a second she figured as she saw his head move slightly, then saw his whole body jump as he suddenly realized that there was a person sitting in front of him. "Serenity!" he exclaimed in shock, his voice giving her chills just as it did the first time she heard it.

'Voice that puts chocolate cream to shame…yep that's the priest alright,' she thought. A small innocent smile came to her lips as she tilted her head slightly to the side, "Panagiotis."

Cosmos would have laughed if she could as she watched him regain composure after the initial shock; something told her that he wasn't one to be startled easily. "W-what are you doing here?"

"Visiting a friend," she answered smoothly, "You haven't been around lately so I decided to check up on you."

By this time Panagiotis had regain his composure and nodded, "I've been busy as of late…"

"Haven't we all?" she asked with a smile, "A simple 'hello' from time to time is all I ask."

"I understand, but my job demands much time…" he replied.

"You're job requires so much of your time that you can't even take two seconds to say 'hi' and 'bye' to someone?"

"I'm a high priest now," he stated.

"And I've always been the Moon Princess," she countered, obviously thinking that he couldn't counter that one.

Well he did, "Then you should know how demanding responsibilities can be when holding such high titles."

A frown formed on her lips, "Have the words 'Let's be spontaneous' ever crossed your mind?"

"Yes, they describe Erymanthus perfectly," Panagiotis answered.

"Well guess what?" she grabbed his hand and got to her feet, pulling the surprised high priest with her, "They're going to describe you as well for today."

Serenity laughed inside her mind as she saw sensed the befuddled look on her 'captive's' face as he was dragged out of the room, "But"

"No 'buts'! Rei already tattled on you that you've been meditating all morning; you need a break! And don't try to argue with me or I'll pull the princess stunt and command you to come with me," she interrupted.

A sigh escaped the man's lips, "Yes, your highness…"

This time, she really did laugh.

* * *

Serenity stirred slightly as she felt herself waking up. She had a surprisingly good night sleep considering that the bed she had slept in was less than comfortable. She guessed that compared to sleeping on hard ground and floating space rocks, this was a luxury. Sitting up, it took her a few minutes to remember where she was and the events of the night before. That Zidane guy had brought her back to his hangout after finding her the night before. Well, actually it was his boss's hangout; Zidane was part of a group of actors who called Lindblum home.

Placing her hands behind her head, she looked up at the wooden ceiling. She found it curious that she started having dreams of the past now of all times. She didn't expect anything big to come of it. After all, last time she dreamed of those two strangers nothing relating them happened, not to her knowledge at least… Although she found herself wondering why Rei offered to 'cover' for her…if Panagiotis was a high priest, then there should have been nothing wrong with her talking to him. In fact, she would probably be encouraged to do so; the royals of the moon kingdom were the bearers of the holy relic, the Imperial Silver Crystal, thus Serenity figured that they would be required to have close ties to the temple.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a very light tap on her door, one that she wouldn't have picked up if she were asleep. She sat up and looked at the door, "I'm up."

"Morning Serenity. Is it ok to come in?" she heard Zidane's voice on the other side.

Before she could answer, she heard what sounded like a foot stomp on the other side of her door. "Darlin'! Ya don't ask ta go inta a lady's room! It's just plain rude!" she heard a feminine voice with a thick southern accent exclaim on the other side, obviously at Zidane.

"Okay darlin'. I'll rememba' that next time…" she heard Zidane reply, trying to imitate the voice of the woman, causing the girls on both sides of the door to laugh.

Serenity got out of bed and opened the door, "I'll let you in just so long as you promise never to do that again."

Zidane rubbed the back of his head and grinned sheepishly, "That bad huh?"

"Yes," both she and the other woman replied.

"Aw no fair! I'm getting picked on from both sides!" he play-pouted before gesturing to the woman standing next to him, "Serenity, this is Ruby. She's part of our crew but spends most her time running a mini theater in Alexandria. Rube, this is Serenity."

"Pleased ta meet'cha," Ruby smiled.

"The pleasure's all mine," Serenity replied, smiling kindly as well.

Zidane waited for the two to finish their greetings to one another before looking back at the blond, "So are you feeling better?"

Serenity nodded, "Yeah, it feels like I've gotten my land legs back finally…I guess I was up in the air longer than usual for it to last that long. Thanks for giving me a hand."

He waved it off, "Ah, don't worry about it; I couldn't leave a pretty girl in distress like that." That earned him a smack from Ruby who hissed something that sounded like "stop flirting" at him. He rubbed his head, "Yes ma'am…"

Serenity shook her head, a slight look of amusement on her face as she let them in her temporary room. The two entered and Zidane grabbed a chair from a table in the room, spinning it around and sitting on it backwards while the two females sat at the table normally.

"So darlin', Zidane says ya jus' got into town or somethin' last night. What brang ya to Lindblum?" Ruby asked, starting up a conversation and wanting to know a little about the blond.

It took the scout less than a second to decide that the truth might be a little much, so she toned it down some, "I'm actually looking for someone. I thought I might find some news about him here, but now that I'm here I highly doubt he came this way."

Zidane's eyes lit up with curiosity at this point, "Really? Why's that?"

"Let's just say he has a way of leaving his mark on society," she replied. It was true; if her hair and skin color alone was enough to make her a walking caution sign, she had a feeling a blue giant wanting to destroy everything wouldn't go unnoticed.

She noticed how the boy's eyebrows creased slightly when she said this. Obviously he thought he may have an idea of who she was talking about. "…You're not looking for someone by the name of 'King' are you?" She shook her head in response, having never heard the name before, "Okay…how about Kuja?"

Serenity let out a noticeable sigh and shook her head, "No, but that's a name that's been popping up a LOT wherever I go…"

"Really? Why's that?" he asked.

"I dunno. Apparently I look like him or something I guess. A pack of moogles asked if I was related to him," she answered with a shrug. Zidane sat and processed this piece of information for a few seconds.

Then he laughed, "Are you serious?? Someone actually thought that you looked like Kuja?"

"I'm guessing from your reaction that I don't…" she commented. It was an invitation for him to explain.

He laughed a little more before looking at her, his eyes still dancing a little, "Serenity, I've seen Kuja both in and out of Trance. Trust me the only thing you have in common with him is that you're a girl and he _looks_ like a girl."

The blond was about to ask more about Kuja and how the boy knew him when something he said caught her attention, "Trance?"

"Oh, that's when ya geta power boost from super strong emotions or from takin' too much of a beatin'. Few people know about this skill and fewer actually have it, but Kuja and Zidane are two of 'em," Ruby answered.

"I see," she said, storing this information in her mind for later just in case she needed it.

Zidane cleared his throat, "So anyway, have you checked Alexandria for your friend?"

Ruby nodded, "Yeah there was a commotion there yesterday mornin. Apparently some suspicious person was causin' a scene…"

Serenity resisted the urge to snort. Suspicious person causing a scene eh…? It amazed her how people could blow things out of proportion… She noticed Zidane stiffen at the news though and looked at him in concern, "Are you ok?"

"Rube, what happened? Was any of the castle staff involved?" he asked a little urgently.

"Oh keep yer britches on darlin'! Yer canary wasn't involved. In fact I think it was Sir Rust-a-lot causing most of the scene," Ruby said, watching as Zidane visibly relaxed. She looked at the confused blond, "He has a sweetie pie in the castle."

'Oh, that explains it…' she thought, while giving a nod of comprehension. "And yes, I've already checked Alexandria," she stated.

Zidane crossed his arms as he thought, his tail swishing slightly as he did, "Hm…well other than that, the only places on the Mist continent where someone would most likely go at the moment are Treno or possible Dali. Everywhere else is pretty much still being rebuilt or is just too small for a stranger to go unnoticed…Daguerro could also be a good place to find a lost person…it's South West of the Forgotten continent…"

Serenity stored the names of these places in her mind. She would be sure to explore these places later…

Just then, a loud sneezing noise caught their attention. Zidane got to his feet, "I guess Boss is looking for us…"

"Correction, he's lookin' for you darlin'; we're just gonna be sheep and follow ya," Ruby replied, getting up as well. Serenity followed suit.

The three of them walked down a hall until they came to a large room filled with random items, mostly stage props, but Serenity noticed that there were a few valuables stashed away here and there as well. 'Ah, so the acting's a cover for them to get around…' she guessed, concluding that they must be thieves. She found herself feeling like she guessed correctly when two familiar faces entered the room: it was the two men who had been in the alley in Alexandria.

"Yo Zidane! Who's the hottie?" asked the one wearing blue.

"Don't tell us you're ditching Dagger already! Not after all the shit we had to go through to pull off that big entrance you made," said the other.

"Of course not," Zidane replied lightly before gesturing to them, "Serenity, this is Blank and Marcus. Guys, this is Serenity."

"Hey," said the one called Marcus.

"What's up?" asked Blank.

"Hi," she replied to their greetings just as two others came in. She recognized them from the night before; the one with the hammer was known as Cinna, and the big guy with the potbelly was Baku, the Boss.

Before anyone could say anything, Baku took notice of the extra in the room and let out his trademark laugh, "GWAHAHAHAHA! Yer lookin' better than you did last night missy! You looked so sick I thought yer hair was turnin' white!"

Serenity paled at the thought. That would have been something to explain if she lost control of her powers and her hair started turning silver…

Zidane saw her pale but interpreted it differently, "Oh, come on Boss; she was embarrassed as it was. She doesn't need people emphasizing her condition!"

Hearing this, Serenity decided that she liked this monkey tailed kid who stood up for her and rubbed the back of her head embarrassed, "Nah, I don't need to be protected from that; I know I must've looked like crap."

"If you looked like crap when I found you, then remind me to have tissue handy when you're looking great," Zidane grinned.

She looked at him with a little humor in her eyes "That was cheesy."

"Yeah, I realized how bad it sounded as soon as I said it," he agreed.

The two chatted for awhile longer about the do's and don't's of pickup lines, much to the both amusement and horror of the people in the room.

"She fits right in, doesn't she?" Marcus whispered to Blank and Cinna.

"Sure looks that way," Blank agreed.

"I wonder how well she would match us skill wise…" Cinna wondered aloud, but quiet at the same time so that the two blonds wouldn't hear him. The other two nodded. Baku and Ruby sat back and watched; this would be interesting…even if the girl didn't do anything, once Zidane found out what they were doing he would make a scene out of those three worth watching.

"So Serenity, where're you from anyway?" Blank asked, heading over to where she stood.

Serenity looked over at him when he spoke, putting her conversation with Zidane on hold for a moment, "Oh, nowhere in particular. I'm more of a traveler than a settler."

"Sounds a bit like us. How about family? Got any in the area?" Marcus joined in, circling around the other side of the table.

She shook her head, "Nah, I've been on my own for years."

This piece of information was news to Zidane, "Seriously? How come you didn't say anything about it before?"

Serenity shrugged, "Never came up…"

Cinna, who had come over there as well, rubbed his eyes, "That's so sad! No family? All alone? What a harsh life!"

'You have no idea…' Cosmos felt like replying, but kept her mouth shut.

"Well, you know, if you ever need a shoulder to cry on or an extra hand to help you out, you can always count on us," Blank piped up, draping an arm on her shoulder.

"Really…" she said, a hint of suspicion in her voice, and evident in her eyes.

Blank was unfazed by it, "Of course! Don't you agree Marcus?"

"Sure thing bro!" Marcus answered, pushing Zidane aside so that he could drape an arm on her other shoulder.

Serenity smirked, "Well I appreciate the gesture…"

"Alright you guys! Leave the lady alone," Baku told the three. They obeyed and headed back to over where they were originally standing.

Serenity shook her head. 'That was interesting…' "Oh! And Blank, Marcus, I would really like my swords back if you don't mind."

The two stopped walking as they realized they were caught. Blank turned around to face her, his face looking completely innocent and confused, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Marcus looked over at her as well, "Yeah, what swords?"

Zidane looked at the two incredulously. They were going to rob someone who was _invited_ in? Sure he was a thief himself, but there were still boundaries!

Serenity shrugged, "Ok then, if you won't give them back, then Cinna will get them back for me."

Four young thieves looked at her in surprise, while a woman and a thief boss looked intrigued. "I will?" Cinna asked confused.

She nodded, "Yep."

"And why would I do that?" he asked suspiciously.

Rather than answer with words, she showed him why. All the eyes in the room widened when she held up a raggedy doll, one which Cinna recognized instantly as one he had been holding onto a little while ago, "My Garnet!"

"Now, we're both looking to get our hands on a treasure of great value to us, so I propose a trade. My blades for your doll"

"Royal action figure!" Cinna corrected, his eyes trained on the doll.

"Very well, my blades for your 'royal action figure'…sentimental wise, I think you received the better end of the bargain here…" she finished, mentally counting down from three. By the time she reached one, Cinna had gotten the blades from Blank and Marcus and was practically shoving them at her as she handed him the doll.

"My Garnet! My baby!" Cinna cried with joy, hugging the doll as Serenity re-sheathed Destiny's Wrath.

"GWAHAHAHA! Gotta say girly, you have a keen eye for treasure huntin', and a swift arm for swipin' em," Baku commented, after the whole ordeal was over.

"Thanks…I guess."

Baku was silent for a moment before he spoke again, "…This guy you're lookin for, do ya need to find him right away?"

Serenity raised an eyebrow at the seemingly out of the blue question before shaking her head, "I'm in no hurry…"

"Well, our group travels to wherever there is treasure to be found and a show to be put on…why not stick with us for the time being? Then you'll have a place to stay while on your travels and will be able to get from place to place with relative ease," Baku offered.

She blinked in surprise. "Seriously?" she asked.

"Why not? We could use some fresh talent. My boys became pretty popular during the war so treasure huntin's been less than fruitful lately…" he explained.

"Yeah, go fer it Serenity! Then I won't have ta work on keeping all these Tantalus boys at bay on my own!" Ruby piped up.

"We're not that bad," Blank protested.

"That's what you think…" she replied.

Zidane chuckled at the short couple spat before turning to the blond next to him, "The choice is yours."

Serenity looked around at the group. They had welcomed her in and made her feel like she was right at home. She didn't even feel any hard feelings with the sword attempt because she could tell they were just testing her. Despite the fact that she knew they were all thieves, she felt comfortable here, something that she had not been able to say in a long time… She looked at the group, "Well, looks like your up one team member, 'cause I'm in."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	7. Chapter 7

ZT: Hey everyone. Hope you're all still enjoying the story.

Kuja: Why aren't you doing your homework?

ZT: Because I want to write.

Kuja: Then write your essay.

ZT: But-but- it's HOMEWORK!

Kuja: So? If you don't do it, you'll fail.

ZT:...Kaiba!

Seto: I'm strictly math.

ZT: Come on, just this once…?

Seto: Do it yourself.

Kuja: (Chuckles)

ZT: ….Kuja…

Kuja: No.

ZT: Why not?

Kuja: Because it's a psychology report. The only thing I have in common with psychology is that I'm the poster child for the mental affects on a child when a deranged parent plays favoritism to the younger sibling.

ZT:…Remind me if I ever decide to switch my major to psychology to use you in my thesis.

Kuja: Have to do your homework if you want to get that far.

ZT: Great, I'm being lectured about homework by a video game character…alright, well while I'm slaving over my report, here's the next chapter. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses**:

A person writing a review – Thanks. I like to keep the chapters coming at a steady pace. Usually I try to update once every other day but I was really eager to start getting this story out there. There's a reason that Garland knows of Cosmos, but that will be explained in a later chapter. As for the identity of the priest…nope not telling yet.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 6

"You saw the silver warrior?" Beatrix looked at the Burmecian in front of her in surprise. When Freya had come to Alexandria's palace unannounced, she had come to greet them in Garnet's place. She wasn't expecting them to be coming looking for Steiner and herself.

Freya nodded, "Yes, Amarant, Eiko, Vivi, and I had been training outside of Gizamaluke's grotto a few weeks ago when we saw her. She looked like something out of this world."

Beatrix nodded, "When we received word of her in town people said she bared a resemblance to Kuja."

Freya shook her head, "I wouldn't go that far. Sure she had sliver hair and light skin, but that about ends similarities that I saw between the two. It wouldn't be enough for me to compare her to him."

"I see, then it must have been the citizens letting their imagination get the better of them; people are still a little on edge here…" the general commented.

"I can understand that. However, I didn't come to talk about this woman's appearance and the paranoia of the people," Freya said, "We were fighting grand dragons. You know how annoying they are: you can hit them with your ultimate trance attack while their backs are turned and they still find it in them to retaliate."

Beatrix nodded, "What about it?"

"…This woman to one down with one strike."

"What?!" Beatrix exclaimed. One hit? It was not possible! No one on Gaia possessed that type of strength!

"I think it may be best if we find this woman and find out what she wants. If she's just here, so be it, but I'd rather not find out that she's an enemy later down the road," Freya suggested.

Beatrix nodded, "I agree; I'll speak to her majesty and Steiner about this at once. I'll also send word to Tantalus; Zidane might want to know about this."

"Don't bother; I'm going to Lindblum anyway to talk to Cid. I'll find Zidane while I'm there," Freya explained.

"Very well, tell him I said hello then," the general smiled.

"I will," Freya curtseyed and began walking towards the ferry. She hadn't seen Zidane in a few months. She wondered if anything was new with him…

* * *

"Hurry up Freya! I wanna see Zidane!" Eiko exclaimed, running out of the air cap as it reached the Theater district. After Freya had spoken to the Regent and told him she was off to find Zidane next, the little summoner had begged to go with her, having not seen the blond thief in awhile herself.

"I'm coming Eiko," the Burmecian replied, coming at a slower pace behind the excited girl.

"But if we don't hurry we might miss him!" Eiko exclaimed, jumping as she did.

"If Zidane were to leave from his hideout he would have to come this way anyway," she replied calmly, heading towards the stairs that led down to where Tantalus's hideout was. She stopped mid-step when laughing and what sounded like cursing caught her attention.

"What is it Freya?" Eiko asked, her hearing not as strong as the one-next-to-her's was.

"I think we might want to back up…" Freya said, lightly pushing the little girl away from the stairs as she did.

No sooner had she done this the voice that she had heard cursing rang out clear as day, "ZIDANE TRIBAL! Give me back my boot right now!" Eiko and Freya exchanged confused glances as the laughter, which was obviously Zidane's, grew in volume as he sprinted up the stairs with a black boot in hand. He was being pursued by a woman they had never seen before, dressed in black with some purple items to accent the outfit, and only one boot on.

"I told you I would take it if you didn't get up," he laughed, running towards the dead end.

"A girl needs her beauty sleep!" she growled, still chasing after him.

"I've already told you, you already look like a goddess. You've had enough beauty sleep to last the rest of your life. Save it for someone who needs it!" he replied.

"You refuse to take it," she shot back. "And no amount of beauty rest is gonna help Cinna."

"Got a point there…about Cinna at least," Zidane agreed, still trying to keep the boot away from the blond.

"Who is that?" Eiko asked Freya.

The Burmecian shook her head, "I don't know…"

Eiko looked back at the two before deciding to get their attention, "ZIDANE!"

The child's yell caught the attention of both immediately. Had they been close enough to see the whites of their eyes, Eiko and Freya would have noticed the woman's eyes widen a fraction in recognition before going back to normal.

Zidane waved at the two when he realized who called him, "Eiko! Freya!" He beckoned the blond to follow him as he ran over to them, tossing the boot to her in the process. She slipped on her prize before following.

As soon as he was in a close enough vicinity, the little summoner threw her arms around the teen's waist. "I missed you Zidane! How come you never visit anymore?!"

"Sorry Eiko, I've been busy lately. Had to train our newest recruit," he replied, throwing a glance and grin at Serenity who was close enough to hear.

"Correction, the new recruit was busy retraining _you_, Mr. Level A treasure hunter who still doesn't know how I managed to nab Cinna's doll," she retaliated with her own smirk.

"Oh yeah I'm sure…" he said with mock sarcasm before looking at the two in front of him, "Freya, Eiko, I'd like you two to meet Serenity, the first female bandit of Tantalus. Serenity, these are two of my close friends, Eiko and Freya."

Serenity waved coolly, "What's up?" Inside though, she was a bit nervous. She recognized these two as half of the group that she saved from the dragon the day before she joined Tantalus. She hoped that the spell which kept the sailors' identity secret still worked well enough to keep the two from recognizing her…

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Freya said kindly.

"What about Ruby?" Eiko asked, not bothering to say hi.

"Rube's strictly acting," Zidane explained.

Eiko looked the woman over. She was pretty, and looked to be more cleanly kept than the other members of Tantalus, but she had eyes that looked like they held secrets behind those blue orbs. 'Definitely the eyes of a thief!' Eiko concluded.

"So, what brings you two here? Just dropping by to say hello?" Zidane asked, noticing that Serenity was getting the calculating look form Eiko and deciding to spare her from any questions the young summoner may have.

"Actually, we came to ask for your help," Freya replied, getting Zidane's full attention.

It got Serenity's as well, "What happened?"

"Hey! We asked for Zidane's help, not yours!" Eiko exclaimed, looking over at Serenity accusingly.

This caused the blond to raise an eyebrow. 'Getting snapped at by a kid who should still be in elementary school…now what does that remind me of…' she thought, a little pink haired girl when they had first met coming to mind. "Well I figured if you needed help, getting two more people rather than one would make the job all the more easier…"

"And besides, Serenity and I are a team; we have been since she joined Tantalus," Zidane added, knowing that he may be able to get a little further with Eiko than Serenity because of the crush she used to/quite possibly still had on him.

"Hmph!" was Eiko's reply as she turned away from the blond woman and focused all her attention on the blond man, "Ok Zidane, whatever you say."

Serenity felt her eye twitch slightly; this little weasel was EXACTLY like Chibiusa used to be! Usually that would make her heart break at the memory of one of her loved ones, but this little brat reminded her of Chibiusa in her "little spore" days, meaning all she wanted to do was lock her in a closet somewhere.

Freya cleared her throat to get their attention again, catching the tension between the other two females and also noting that Zidane's friend was losing patience with the little summoner very fast. "We're actually looking for someone. Have you heard about the silver being that appeared not too long ago?"

'Oh great! Not this again!' Serenity groaned inside. Outside, she put on a face that showed recognition, "Yeah, Ruby said something about it, didn't she?"

Zidane nodded, "Someone apparently showed up in Alexandria and made Rusty have a fit."

"That's not the only place where she showed up," Eiko said, getting the attention to come to her, "The person showed up outside of Gizamaluke's grotto where those grand dragons hang out. We were training there with Vivi and Amarant when she showed up."

"So what happened?" Serenity asked, knowing full well what happened.

"We were about to be back attacked by a dragon while healing each other when she struck the dragon first," Zidane opened his mouth to speak when Freya continued, "…killing it with one blow."

"Say what?!" Zidane asked, eyes widening, hands raised in front of his chest almost defensively, and reeling back a little, something that Serenity had already learned was his "I'm seriously shocked here" stance. He looked at Serenity, probably looking to see if she heard what he did.

"Sounds like that's one powerful chick…" Serenity commented, feeling a little cocky that she could get away with complimenting herself without anyone smacking her upside the head for it.

"I'll say! There's NO ONE on Gaia that I know of who can take down a grand dragon with one hit!" Zidane exclaimed, getting over his initial shock. "So what are you guys worried about this person?"

Freya nodded, "I've already talked with the Regent and General Beatrix about the matter. They both agree that it would be wise to find this person and at least find out if she's friend or foe."

"Whoa hold on a second," Serenity intervened. She was fine with people being wary of her, but actually trying to track her down when she had done nothing? That was a bit ridiculous. And aside from that they would be going on a wild goose chase anyway because they obviously did not realize that she was the silver haired being… "If this woman was a threat, why would she let you escape in the first place? If you were injured, wouldn't it have just been easier on her to let the other dragon finish you off. Or if she wanted to destroy it for a workout, wouldn't she get rid of you guys as well to make sure you couldn't go and spread the word about her power?"

"Well, she could have always done that to show off her power as a form of mockery," Zidane pointed out.

'Damn he's right...' she thought, mentally kicking herself. She couldn't argue with that; her enemies did it all the time! The only way she could really counter that would be to say that she was the silver haired warrior, but then she'd have even more problems to deal with.

"So where do you suggest we start looking?" Zidane's voice took her from her thoughts and she looked at him. His question had been addressed to Freya.

"Well, since there hasn't been any word of her on the mist continent in a few months, I think it's safe to say she's not here," Freya explained.

'Either that or she got smart and changed her appearance…'

"That makes sense…are we gonna have a meeting to decide what to do next?" Zidane asked.

Freya nodded, "Everyone is going to meet in Lindblum palace tomorrow to discuss further plans."

Zidane nodded, "I'll be there."

* * *

The conversation between the group lasted a bit longer before Freya and Eiko decided it was time to take their leave. Zidane and Serenity walked them to the Air cab station before heading back to Tantalus's hideout.

"Well, I guess that means I'm gonna be going on another adventure pretty soon," Zidane said as they headed back.

"I guess…hey Zidane?" Serenity looked at the blond thief next to her.

"Yeah?"

"…What are you going to do if you find the silver being?" she asked.

Zidane shrugged, "I don't know. She hasn't done anything wrong, but then again, Kuja hung around for the longest time before actually laying down his cards. I guess I'll try and find out what she's up to. If she's dangerous then I'll stop her before she can do anything."

"And if she's not?"

He looked at his friend curiously. She sure was asking a lot of questions…and she looked like she was a little worried. Well, to be honest he was too; he knew he couldn't take more damage than this being could dish out with one blow. He decided to lighten the mood some, "Oh don't worry Serenity I won't ask her out, even if she is cute. You know my heart's reserved for you."

That broke the tense air around Serenity instantly, and she feigned a disgusted face, "You're too young for me!"

Zidane laughed as she said that when something donned on him, "Her Serenity, I know it's not proper to ask, but I never did find out how old you are…"

"Yeah? I don't know how old you are either, so we're even," she replied smoothly.

"Ok, well I'm 17. So now you need to even the odds," he countered smoothly.

Serenity shrugged, "I lost count at 10 thousand."

"No kidding?" he asked sarcastically, "Come on Serenity I'm dying here!"

For a brief moment she considered telling him that it was the truth just to see his reaction, but then decided against it, "I'm 22." Why she chose that number she hadn't the slightest clue, but she was stuck with it now… just like when she decided to say her name was 'Serenity' rather than 'Usagi'…She just hoped that she would remember what age she said in case it came up again later…

"22 huh? That's not THAT much older than I am…" Zidane said with a sly grin.

"True, but it's enough to get me arrested," she countered.

"You do realize that you're a bandit, and wanted by the law anyway, right?"

"Well in that case….you're still too young for me." She walked smugly into the hideout with Zidane pretending to pout behind her.

* * *

Elsewhere, Kuja sighed as he rode over the ocean on his newly recreated silver dragon. So he was supposed to find a legendary silver warrior…Garland sure didn't give him much to go on. Well, he guessed that the best place to start would be a place where he could get a lot of research done. He was just glad that it was probably the only place on Gaia where he could get around without being recognized as an evil being.

As he looked out at the expanse of sea below him, Kuja couldn't help but let his mind go over a few questions of his own about this being. During his days as Garland's angel of death, Kuja had researched what he thought was all of Gaia's secrets which had to do with power, and never once had he come across a silver being…where did Garland find this information, and why did he think to go after it now? Was it hiding then? And if so, where was it when the old wizard was still alive?

Well, he would get his answers soon enough; his destination had just come into view…

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	8. Chapter 8

ZT: Hey people! Mwahaha I finished my report so I can keep on writing.

Kuja: That is until it dons on you that you have three finals next week.

ZT: ….I really hate you.

Kuja: You keep saying that, then you see me smirk and you do the fangirl squeal and faint.

ZT: I do not!

Kuja: Yes you do.

ZT: Do not!

Kuja: Do to

ZT: Do not!

Kuja: Do to

ZT: Do no- (Kuja smirks) AHHHHHHHHH! (Faints)

Kuja: I rest my case. She doesn't own FF9 or Sailor Moon.

**Review Responses:**

A person writing a review – I'm your hero? No one has ever told me that before! Do I get a cape? I like how you're guessing their identities; if you wind up changing your mind on who you think the two are, let me know, k?

CelticHero – His reaction will be interesting, that's for sure. As for who she's gonna be paired with…nope, not telling yet.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 7

The next day, Zidane walked into Lindblum castle with Serenity. She hadn't been invited to the meeting because she wasn't one of the heroes of Gaia, but she still offered to walk him there anyway.

"You sure you'll be ok for a few hours?" Zidane asked for what felt like the hundredth time as they rode the elevator down to the bottom level.

Serenity nodded, "Don't worry about me; I'll be at the dock when you're done; you just go have fun at your meeting.

"Fun at a meeting…I'll try. Ok well don't let yourself get too bored. See ya in a while," he said as the elevator stopped and she got off.

"See ya," she replied with a wave before heading over to the docks.

Zidane watched her get onto the cart that went to the docks before riding the elevator up to the floor where the conference room was. He felt a little bad leaving her at the docks on her own, but figured she wanted the alone time. Ever since yesterday she had been a little out of it, like she had something big on her mind.

He sighed slightly; she had been with Tantalus for about a month, and their brothers and Ruby always said that the two seemed to read each other perfectly with how they got along. But the truth was there was still the big mystery to Serenity, one where he didn't even know where to begin to start solving it. But he guessed she must have thought the same thing. After all, how many thieves get _invited_ into a palace? And he never did tell her how he knew Kuja, that he was in fact one of the heroes of Gaia and was actually the younger brother of the man who tried to destroy the world. 'I can just imagine the look on her face if I told her that part…' he thought. That was a bit ironic to him; she had been accused by a moogle of being related to Kuja. Not Zidane, Kuja. Then she runs into his real brother, joins a band of thieves, and pretty much becomes like a sister to him. 'And of course if she were my sister, she would have to be Kuja's as well because I'm technically his brother,' he thought laughing a little to himself when he thought about it.

"What's so funny Zidane?" The gentle voice took the genome by surprise. He had been so busy thinking that he hadn't noticed the elevator stop on the middle level to pick up some people along the way. Seeing who spoke, Zidane's breath almost got stuck in his throat…almost being that he caught himself before making a scene. With her long brown hair and deep chocolate eyes, wearing her favorite orange jumpsuit, she looked just like he remembered her. "Dagger! How've you been?" he asked moving aside so that she and Steiner could get on.

The young queen smiled at him as she got on the elevator, "I've been fine. And you?"

"Pretty good," he looked at the other who boarded the elevator, "'Sup Rusty?"

"Zidane," Steiner replied.

"I haven't seen you around Alexandria lately Zidane…" Dagger said, getting the genome's attention again. She looked down at her gloves, "I missed you."

Zidane smiled weakly, "Sorry, there's just been a lot to do here. We just finished rebuilding out hideout when we received a new recruit who's under my wing for the time being." He almost expected to hear retaliation from Serenity when he remembered that he left her back at the docks, 'Man have I really gotten that used to her being around in such a short amount of time?'

"A new recruit? You ruffians have another member now?!" Steiner exclaimed in horror.

Dagger seemed more intrigued however, "Really? You'll have to introduce me to him sometime."

Zidane nodded, "Sure thing. Oh, and he's a she."

"Oh!" she put a hand up to her mouth in embarrassment. "W-well then, you will have to introduce me to _her_ sometime."

Zidane laughed, "Yeah, no problem. Actually, I'm picking her up after the meeting if you want to meet her then; she's down at the docks."

The brunette looked at him and smiled, nodding, "I would like that."

Before their conversation could go any further, they reached the upper level and headed to the conference room where everyone was already waiting.

"Ah, Queen Garnet, Captain Steiner, Zidane, it's good to see you both again," Regent Cid said as he saw the three come in.

"Hey Cid. What's up Hilda?" Zidane said with a wave to the two.

"Hello Uncle Cid, Aunt Hilda," Dagger said with a bow.

"Regent. Lady Hilda," Steiner saluted.

"Hello to all of you," Hilda replied.

"Well, now that we're all here, why don't we get right to the matter at hand," Cid suggested. Everyone in the room nodded as the last three members of the group took their places around the table. "As you have all heard, there has been a strange being wandering around as of late. Some of you have seen this being for yourself and even witnessed her power. But shortly after, she vanished and has not been seen since."

"We need to find out if this being is friend or foe. It would be unwise to let her roam freely if she were not benevolent," Freya added.

"Friend or foe? She's obviously a foe! When she came to Alexandria there was panic and Chaos everywhere! We must find this miscreant and put her behind bars!" Steiner bellowed.

Dagger shook her head, "Steiner, you were the one making most of the chaos then…all she did was walk through Alexandria." When Dagger had learned about the new being in Alexandria, she had sent out some soldiers to ask around to find out exactly what the silver being had done to get so many of her guards to run off like that. Apparently she had done nothing and it was just the fact that people compared her appearance to Kuja that had made her receive so much attention.

"Well-I-uh," Steiner stuttered a little baffled by what his queen had said.

"She's got a point Rusty. Ruby, Blank, and Marcus were there that day and said the same thing. Although Blank did mention something about her standing up to Alleyway Jack when he tried to rob her," Zidane added.

"Alleyway Jack…Ugh! That's why we couldn't find her! She slipped through that blasted alleyway!" Steiner looked like he was going to smack his forehead. "But then that still doesn't explain why no one saw her leave…"

"…Maybe she flew away," Vivi suggested.

Steiner looked at him confused, "Flew away, Master Vivi?"

The black mage adjusted his hat, "That's how she left when we saw her. Those wings on her back are real."

Dagger's eyes narrowed slightly, "That's odd…there were no reports of her having wings."

"No?" Freya asked in surprise, "They were enormous; I would have though that would be one of the first things people would say she had."

"Perhaps we are looking for two people then," Cid suggested.

"Or she has the ability to alter her body," Hilda added. Being an enchantress herself, she knew that doing something like that was not impossible.

"Good point. Well, either way, we know we're looking for this being. Since there has been no word about her on the Mist continent in awhile, I think it's safe to say she's not here anymore," Cid concluded.

"Ok, so we're going to the other continents. How are we going to search them? As a group? Or are we going to split up?" Zidane asked.

"Splitting up sounds best; we'll cover more ground that way," Amarant replied, speaking for the first time.

"I agree. Each of you should split into pairs and cover certain continents. Since the outer continent has more places to search, perhaps two groups should go there," Cid suggested.

"I would like to go there," Vivi said a little timidly, "I want to check on the Black Mages."

"And I wanna check on Madain Sari!" Eiko piped up.

Dagger nodded, "I shall go there as well."

Zidane shrugged, "Well in that case"

"I shall go there as well! It is my sworn duty to protect the queen!" Steiner interrupted.

Zidane looked like he was about to protest, but then decided against it; Vivi and Steiner made a good team; it would be stupid to break them apart. And the two summoners could definitely hold their own.

"Alright, well Amarant and I can check out the Lost Continent," Freya decided, receiving a nod from Amarant as she did.

"Alright, well I guess that leaves me with the outer continent then…" Zidane decided, before realizing something. "Uh…anybody else notice something wrong with this picture?" Everyone looked around before it donned on them.

"Quina never showed up," Freya stated.

"I don't think s/he was invited…" Amarant added.

"So then who's Zidane gonna go with?" Eiko practically yelled.

"I'll find someone, don't worry," he replied. In truth, he already had a certain person in mind. He had taken Serenity out to the fields outside of Lindblum and knew that those swords of hers weren't just for show.

"I don't know Zidane…I would be more comfortable if you had someone we knew with you…" Dagger said. The others in the room nodded in agreement.

"Well if you wanna meet her, she's this way," Zidane replied, gesturing for the group to follow him.

* * *

Outside on the docks, Serenity sighed as she dangled her feet over the edge, staring out at the sea. It was peaceful here, and it gave her time to think. She had had issues before with people being suspicious of her, but never to this extreme. It made it difficult for her to track down "Big blue" since she couldn't go searching around as easily as she could. Then there was the question of where exactly she was. In her travels, she had never come across a place named "Gaia" before, so exactly how far had she floated before the gravity pulled her in? Was she even remotely near the same galaxy she had passed out in? On that note, how long _was _she out for? There were no planets in the vicinity she and Chaos were fighting in other than the one that had just been developing, so she had to have been out of it for years…And then of course there was the whole ordeal with the dreams…

She let out another sigh and lay back, looking up at the sky. Those dreams about the two men were starting to become more frequent. It was like her mind was just replaying scenes from her past, but it still hid the appearance of the two from her. Why though she couldn't understand. Her eyes narrowed slightly; she had been able to pick up from the dreams that there was something going on, something that apparently she was involved in that the scouts kept covering for her. It seemed that Erymanthus and Panagiotis were involved in it too since they would cover whenever she was with one of the two, or both. 'But what were they covering?' she wondered, closing her eyes and trying to wrack her brain for any detail she might have missed.

As she let her mind go over the details, the sound of footsteps coming her way got her attention. She frowned slightly; those were a lot of pairs of feet she was hearing…she heard one pair stop right by her head. Listening, she caught the sound of something lightly brushing against the planks of the dock and smiled slightly.

"Ok Serenity, I know you're up…" she heard Zidane's voice.

"No I'm not; you're imagining things," she replied with a bit of sarcasm.

"Really? And the fact that you're talking back to me?"

"I'm sleep talking," this earned the blond woman a laugh from the one she was talking to. She grinned at the noise and opened her eyes to see a heedful of blond hair and dancing blue eyes looking down at her, "Meeting over already?"

"Not yet, I wanted to ask you something first."

"Ok, shoot."

"I'm gonna be heading out to the Forgotten Continent. I'm also gonna stop by Daguerro, but before I need that, I need someone to go with me…"

"So you want me to come with?"

"Yeah that's what I was getting at," he answered.

Serenity thought about it; Daguerro was one of the places Zidane said she might want to search for "big blue". And if she went with him she wouldn't have to worry about finding a way over there. She nodded, "Sure, I'll go."

Zidane sighed with relief and grinned, "Great!" He held out his hand to help her up, "But before we go, there are some people I want you to meet."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	9. Chapter 9

ZT: Hey everyone! Just to let everyone know, the updates may come a little more spread on this week until Sunday, reason's being that this is my last week of school before Summer and I have a butt load to do. I'll still try to update daily, but don't be surprised if you suddenly don't find any updates for a few days. Anyway, here's the next chapter. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

Firehedghog - I will.

A person writing a review - woohoo! I got a batmobile now! (Now all I need is a license so I can drive it...) Now I got spider powers too! Awesome! Thanks! Here's the update.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 8

Taking Zidane's hand, Serenity got to her feet, only to realize that there were eight people standing behind him. Her stomach tied itself into five knots, one for each person she had already run into before that was in that crowd. She did her best to hide her nerves and looked at Zidane with a raised eyebrow, "Did I miss the party or something?"

Zidane shook his head and grinned, "These are the others who are going to search for the silver being. You already know Eiko and Freya"

"Wait a minute Zidane! You don't mean that _she_ is the person you want to take along!" Eiko exclaimed in horror.

Serenity raised her eyebrow, "Is that a problem?"

"Yes it is!" she exclaimed, jumping to emphasize that she was not pleased, "We need someone who can help _protect _Zidane, not someone who will get distracted looting Daguerro!"

"Eiko! That's very rude!" Hilda scolded her adopted daughter.

Serenity laughed lightly and shook her head, "It's alright. I've always had trouble getting on kids' good sides."

Eiko jumped again, "I'm not a 'kid'! I'm a young lady you old hag!" Hilda had to stifle a laugh when the blond sent her a look that clearly said 'See what I mean?'

'What have I gotten myself into?' Zidane wondered, silently thankful that Serenity could mask her emotions when she needed to. After all, Marcus had made the mistake of calling her an old hag before; that's when Zidane decided that he should take her out to the fields as backup when fighting monsters. "Well, anyway, the guy with red hair's Amarant." Amarant gave a nod, of acknowledgment, "Don't worry, he's always antisocial.

"It's to balance out your big mouth," Amarant countered casually.

Zidane waved it off, "Of course. Well, the little guy with the hat it Vivi. Don't let his size and age fool you; his magic attacks can give anyone a run for their money."

Vivi adjusted his hat nervously, "H-hello…"

Serenity smiled at the little mage, "Nice to meet you."

"And those two are Regent Cid and his wife Lady Hilda. They're not so much the adventure goers as they are the sitting on thrones and telling us where to go types," Zidane said, earning himself a glare from the regent.

"Yes, we're also the ones who supply you with means of transportation and have sent an army out to save your tail before," Cid replied.

"Eh, true…that's Rusty, more commonly known as 'Adelbert Steiner, Captain of the knights of Pluto'," Zidane added. Serenity noted that his stance had changed slightly, like he was preparing to gun it at any given moment.

She found out why two seconds later, "RUSTY??! Y-YOU RUFFIAN!" Steiner bellowed as Zidane dove behind his partner for safety.

She turned her head to look over her shoulder, "Since when am I your shield?"

"Since I dove behind you," he answered, peeking out from behind her to make sure that Steiner wasn't coming after him. Serenity shook her head and moved to the side, leaving Zidane wide open for Steiner to attack. The genome quickly sprinted out of the way of the knight and scrambled up someplace high.

"Get down here and fight like a man you pathetic thief!" Steiner bellowed from underneath Zidane's temporary sanctuary, unable to get up thanks to his heavy armor.

"Do I have the word 'suicide' stamped on my head? I'm not even armed!" Zidane replied.

Everyone watched the two in amusement for awhile, the standoff reminding them of when a dog chased a cat up a tree. Finally Serenity turned her attention back to the group and noticed that there was one who Zidane hadn't introduced her to yet. She walked over to the young woman. She looked to be about Zidane's age with an orange jumpsuit and chocolate brown hair and eyes. What caught her attention was the fact that there was a large chunk of a jewel hanging around her neck from a long chain. She may have just been imagining things, but she could have sworn she felt a power similar to a Sailor Crystal's flowing from it…

Smiling kindly as to not let the girl know her thoughts, she offered her hand, "I don't believe Zidane had properly introduced us yet…I'm Serenity."

The girl looked up at her in surprise before smiling and taking her hand in a firm handshake, "Garnet til Alexandros, but friends call me Dagger."

"Really? May I call you Dagger then?"

Dagger nodded, "Of course. Any friend of Zidane's is a friend of mine." She looked at the blond woman in front of her. She was obviously older than the young queen, but not by much. She was also very pretty, there was no mistaking that. She almost seemed to have the beauty that countered her own. While Dagger's physical appearance was dark, Serenity's was bright. However, Dagger wore a bright outfit while Serenity wore a dark one. Dagger had a regal look to her. Serenity was a thief and looked the part. They were opposites in every way on the outside, yet it took one look at those blue orbs to tell that inside was a completely different story. Dagger could see that this woman held many secrets, burdens that she kept within herself because she didn't want to put it on the shoulders of others. She felt like she needed to be strong, but just knew that she wasn't strong enough…yes Dagger knew those eyes well; they were her own in a different color. 'So this is why Zidane hasn't come to Alexandria…' Dagger thought. She smiled, "So, how did you and Zidane meet?"

Serenity felt her cheeks tinge pink as she remembered that night, "Well, we met at Pop's diner, but we didn't formally introduce ourselves to each other until we ran into each other later on…"

"Really? What happened then?" Freya asked. She hadn't gotten around to asking how the two met when she talked with Zidane and Serenity last time. She had been a bit curious about it.

"Well, I was feeling a bit ill and Zidane I guess was passing by. He noticed that I wasn't feeling too hot and offered to walk me back to where I was staying. Of course, I had just got into town that evening and hadn't had the chance to find a hotel yet, so he offered to let me stay at his place for the night," she explained.

"And then you just decided to be a permanent residence? Quit mooching off people and get a job," Eiko huffed.

"Baku asked me to stay," she replied, putting a little emphasis on her Boss's name. She was the only one out of the group who seemed to get away with calling him by his first name. It made for good laughs with the group because she would tease Zidane by saying he wasn't the boss's golden child anymore. Of course he would counter by saying something along the lines of her _giving_ the boss his golden child. Then she would say something about nasty minds and the argument would progress from there.

"I never knew that Baku took ladies into his group as well…other than Ruby that is but she's strictly acting right?" Cid asked.

Serenity nodded, "According to the others, I'm the first girl to join the team full time."

"Are we here to make idle chitchat or have we all forgotten why Zidane wanted us to meet her in the first place?" Amarant asked suddenly. He was not one to make pleasant talk with others and they had important matters at hand anyway.

That got everyone's attention back on track. "That's right, Zidane wanted to have you go with him when he went to the Forgotten continent, but we wanted to ask you some things before you went there," Cid said.

"Alright, I hope I have answers for you guys," Serenity replied, waiting for the first question.

Freya nodded, starting things off, "Where Zidane needs to go there are monsters that are fairly powerful. Because of that, I want to make sure that you have some experience in fighting monsters."

The blond nodded, "Yes I've been on my own for years. I had to learn how to defend myself."

The Burmecian nodded, "And your weapon of choice?"

"My short swords, but I can use staffs as well," she answered, making sure not to mention that she could use other forms of a sword since Freya had seen her use the sword of Artemis.

"Interesting…may I see the weapons you have with you?" Freya asked. You could tell a lot about how seasoned a person was by what kind of weapon they carry. Serenity nodded and handed Destiny's Wrath to her. Freya looked over the blades, her eyes narrowing slightly. They were finely crafted, that was for sure, but she had never seen blades of such a design before.

Sensing what Freya must have been thinking, Serenity quickly thought up a lie, "They were custom made a while back."

Freya took this as a legitimate reason and handed the blades back to her, "They look fine, but would you mind coming with me out to the field to test them? I want to see how strong these are before I go any further."

Serenity nodded, "Alright." She looked up where Zidane was still trying to keep away from Steiner, "Zidane, I'll be back in a few; your friends need to make sure that I can get you out of the jams you're bound to get yourself in."

"Wait! You're gonna leave me up here?" he exclaimed.

"Why not? Then I'll know you're not getting into any trouble," she answered with a slight smirk. Zidane called her some choice words but she wasn't listening as she followed Freya to their destination.

* * *

Walking through Dragon's gate behind Freya and followed by Dagger, Serenity found herself looking at a stretch of lush green land which led up to a sandy beach. Behind her she saw that they had just come out of the base of the massive mountain which Lindblum sat upon.

"Alright, lets hurry to the beach," Freya instructed, moving quickly. The other two followed suit. Serenity didn't understand. They wanted to test her skills yet they seemed to be avoiding the grasslands for some reason…when she had flown over her first time here, she hadn't seen any creatures that looked like they were all that dangerous, so what were they avoiding?

Her answer came quicker than she expected when Freya came to a stop and got in a battle stance, "Great…a Vice."

Hearing this, Dagger pulled out her racket and got next to Freya. Serenity followed suit. She found herself staring at a creature which looked like some sort of knight for the monster kingdom.

Before any of them could react, the Vice jumped forward at Dagger. She stumbled back a moment, but did not seemed harmed. She regained composure and glared at it, "It took a potion!"

"Well then lets get it back," Serenity replied, moving forward with the speed that reminded them of Zidane when he went in for a strike. At the last moment, she tucked away one of her blades and grabbed the potion back from the Vice, then slashed it with the blade she still had out. The Vice went down instantly. 'I sure hope that wasn't one of the creatures that's too strong to take out with one hit…' she thought, picking up the items that the creature had dropped when it turned to mist. Ironically it dropped another potion. "Two for the price of one," she said, handing Dagger her potion.

"Thanks," the brunette nodded, "I guess I was so busy thinking about what skills you had, that I forgot you were a thief…we don't really need to worry about the Vice because you can get the items they take from us back."

Serenity nodded, "Yep."

"Alright, well I still want to get to the beach. I want to see how you hold up against a whale zombie," Freya explained.

"Whale zombie huh?" Serenity mused out loud as they walked towards the beach at a slower pace.

Dagger nodded, "They are fairly strong, but can still be taken down fairly easily. The majority of the creatures that are in the Forgotten continent can withstand a bit more than these guys, so it would be ideal if you could take it down in one or two hits."

Serenity nodded, "And if I can't?"

"We'll be here to back you up. Like we said earlier, we deal with Grand dragons for training. These guys may look big, but powerwise whale zombies are shrimp compared to those scaled bastards," Freya explained.

'Ok, that's what I wanted to know,' Serenity thought as they entered the beach area. She stopped as some oddly shaped creatures caught her attention. Their backs were turned towards the group and the other two didn't seem to notice them. She tapped Freya on the shoulder and pointed at them.

Dagger looked over at them as well, "What are Mistodons doing here?"

"They must be left over from when the mist went haywire," Freya said. Dagger nodded in agreement.

The two looked at each other for a second having a silent conversation, then Dagger nodded, "Back me up just in case." The three got in a battle stance right behind the creatures. Dagger stepped forward with her staff in hand. 'Bahamut…' she concentrating on summoning her powerful king of dragons. A sparkle surrounded her as her call was heard, and soon the massive dragon flew out of the sky and past the Mistodons who were still unaware of the danger. It wasn't until Bahamut hit all of them with his Mega Flare attack that they realized they were being attack. But it was too late; the attack was much more than they could take and they turned into mist.

"…That was cool," Serenity couldn't help but compliment the summoner. It was her first time seeing someone call forth something like that; she could tell that the creature was an actual beast, not some youma that someone thought up on a whim and created.

"Thank you," Dagger smiled.

"Dagger's and Eiko's summons came in handy a lot when we were traveling. I guess having the last two summoners with us made our travels a lot easier," Freya stated.

"I think it was more Eiko than myself," Dagger said, blushing slightly, "Part of the time I was afraid to summon then later on I had difficulty summoning because I lost my voice…"

"But you still pulled through in the end right?" Serenity asked, getting the queen's attention.

Dagger nodded, "I suppose so…"

"Then there's no need to dwell on the past because it's over and done with," the blond pointed out.

"Yeah but…I let so many people down then. I wasn't nearly as strong as I could have been, and I caused so much trouble for everyone…" Dagger trailed off, her eyes trained on the ground.

Serenity frowned slightly. She knew those words well. It was the same one she kept telling herself in the years following the fall of her friends and guardians. She took a deep breath, "Listen, I don't know if you truly did let people down in the past or if it just seems that way to you. But either way, it's in the past now; you can't change what happened. However, you do have control over your future. If you don't like how you were back then, make changes so that you'll feel better about yourself now. I mean, it looks like you already are. Your voice is back and you sure didn't look like you had any problems summoning that dragon of yours. That's progress in my books."

"I suppose you're right" Dagger was cut off when a loud echoing noise caught their attention.

Serenity looked over as a massive creature rose out of the water, 'I'll take a wild guess and say that's a whale zombie…' She pulled out her swords as the creature came their way…

* * *

A bunch of random creatures and five whale zombies later, the two decided that Serenity was competent enough to handle whatever the Forgotten continent could throw at her. As they started back, Freya voiced something that she had been curious about, "Serenity, you mentioned that you could fight with a staff as well, correct?"

Serenity nodded, "Yes, why?"

"I was just curious...usually only magic wielders use staffs," Freya explained.

"Oh, that's because I can use magic," she replied honestly, "But I don't like to rely on it too much, so I usually just leave it for a last resort measure."

"I see…does Zidane know you can use magic?" Dagger asked.

Serenity nodded, "I used it before in the fields so that we could get back to Lindblum quicker."

"Ran out of healing items?" Freya asked.

The blond shook her head, "Worse. Late for a meeting with the boss." This caused the two to laugh as they entered Lindblum's dragon gate and head back to where the others were waiting. Serenity had their seal of approval, now all that was left was to let the others know and the adventure could begin.

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	10. Chapter 10

ZT: Hey everyone. Well, three of the millions of things I need to do are done now, so here's an update for you guys. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses**

A person writing a review – Of course you're allowed to guess. Kuja huh? It's possible…I'm not telling until later though. Here's the update.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 9

"Remind me again why I agreed to go with you?" Serenity asked shakily as she held onto Zidane for dear life, looking down at the ground which was very, _very_ far below her. Zidane had decided that it would be much easier for the two of them to get around if they didn't use an airship. Of course, when he decided on that, the foreigner to the land didn't realize what his alternate mode of transportation was.

"Don't worry Serenity. Choco's not gonna drop you," Zidane replied, patting the golden chocobo's neck as he did.

"Some reason, that doesn't make my nerves settle any…" she replied. She usually wasn't one to be uneasy with heights, but being up high in the air on a creature that was smaller than a horse without her wings out made an exception to the case.

"I ride Choco all the time; I'm not gonna fall off. And with how tightly you're holding onto me, you're not gonna fall of either," Zidane said, hoping she would get the hint that she was crushing his ribcage. Obviously she did because he felt the pressure around his torso ease some and heard her mumble and apology behind him.

"So, what's Daguerro like anyway?" Serenity asked, trying to change the subject and get her mind off how high they were.

"It's definitely a unique place. Daguerro is built within a mountain, so you wouldn't even realize it was there if you didn't already know it was. Inside there is a big monument to the guardian of Daguerro which is apparently a big dragon. I guess what creature they based it off of had to do with the fact that the most abundant creature outside of the mountain is the grand dragon…well that and those stupid gimme cats…" Zidane stopped and frowned at the memory of those pathetic things.

Serenity giggled when she heard the tone in his voice, "Don't like them that much?"

"They ask for diamonds. If you give them one, they make fun of you and run off. If you attack them, they retaliate with meteor," he answered.

"Ouch…"

"Tell me about it. Anyway, because of those creatures hanging around outside, there is also a weapon's shop there which sells the best weapons you can buy, and a master synthesist. There are also tons, and I mean _tons_ of books there. Everywhere you look you see 'em. I find that kind of funny since the majority of the place is knee deep in water…" Zidane finished.

'A library huh? Sounds like a might make progress here after all…' Serenity thought. For a while there was silence between the two as Zidane focused on making sure Choco stayed on track, and Serenity let her mind wander. Surprisingly, she found herself not wondering about "Big blue" for very long as her thoughts strayed towards the person in front of her. Although he did not know it, Zidane had been right when he wondered if she was just as curious about him as he was her. She had found it strange that he was able to go into Lindblum's palace even though he was a thief, but had let it slide since he was a resident of the town; she just figured Tantalus did a favor for the Regent awhile back or something. However, when she realized that Zidane's "lady friend" in Alexandria castle was in fact the Queen of Alexandria, then she found it odd. He must have done something on this planet, something big to be welcomed into castles and asked by royals for help. But what, though, she couldn't even begin to guess. She had considered asking him, but thought against it; after all, if she made him answer her questions, it would give him reason to make her answer his. And she knew he had questions.

Serenity let a frown cross her lips when she thought about that last part. She didn't like it; she didn't like lying to him. Well, technically she wasn't lying, just not telling him what she knew, but still, it made her feel bad that he was going through all this trouble to find a particular person, and she didn't even have the nerve to tell him that she sitting right behind him with her arms wrapped around him to keep from falling off a funky looking bird with one seriously big head. 'Why don't I tell him?' she found herself suddenly wondering. After all, it would save him a big headache, and she had nothing against this planet. Sure he might get angry that she kept this information from him, but it didn't matter right? She would be leaving once she found out if this planet had anything to do with "Big blue" or not… As soon as she let the thought pass through her mind, something inside of her screamed back in protest. It caught her by surprise and she tensed for a moment, getting Zidane's attention again.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"N…no, just found myself dozing off," she lied.

"Well if you're able to do that, you must have gotten used to riding Choco pretty quick," he said with a grin.

This caused the blond passenger to groan, "Thanks for reminding me…"

* * *

Kuja sighed in frustration as he placed yet another book on his ever growing pile of searched items. So far he had went through dozens of books, countless scrolls, and had even found an old stone tablet in the back, but found nothing about this "silver warrior" he was supposed to be looking for. He reached down to grab another book from his unsearched pile and realized that he was grabbing air. 'Out of all that I found nothing?' he thought incredulously as he slowly got to his feet. Why couldn't Garland have given him more to go on? A name, a title, a general interest, anything!

Walking down a hall, he found himself in a room with a ladder leading down to another shelf. This room was smaller than the others that he was in, but there was one small problem with it… Kuja glared down at the floor below in distaste before getting on the ladder and climbing down, cringing slightly when the cold water started seeping through his favorite boots and soaked the bottom of his skirt. 'Whose brilliant idea was it to build a massive library in a place filled with so much water?' he wondered, before looking at the bookshelf for anything that might help him.

As he reached for one book in particular, he accidentally knocked another free which fell towards the water. Now, Kuja may have been a villain who tried to destroy all humanity, but he loved his literature. He quickly left the book that he was reaching for and moved quickly to catch the book before it could meet its watery grave, effectively making a big splash when his legs moved and soaking himself even more. "Great…" he muttered, glaring at the book he saved. If this wound up being some children's book about a moogle in the big city he was going to burn it. He flipped open to the first page and nearly dropped the book. He flipped through the pages before finding what had caught his attention. 'There's no way this can be what Garland is looking for…right?' he wondered. There was only one way to find out… He was about to place the book back on the shelf when he thought better of it; information like that should not be left where the wrong people can get it. Knowing he was going to have a guilty conscience for doing this later, he tossed the book into the water before heading out to where his silver dragon was.

He got onto the dragon's back, "To Oeilvert." The dragon turned its head to look at its master questioningly. "You heard me, to Oeilvert." Reluctantly, the dragon lifted its wings and flew into the air, heading north. Kuja sighed and fiddled with a pouch filled with dark matter, hoping that this along with the staff he had bought while he was there would be enough to make up for his lack of magic when he went into the monster infested place. 'I should have taught myself how to use a weapon when I first learned of that place…' he thought with an annoyed sigh at his own oversight.

As his dragon flew away, Kuja did not bother to look back at the place where he had once been. Had he done so, he might have been able to make out the figure of a person who was staring after him.

* * *

Serenity didn't know why, but something had itched at her to look up once she and Zidane had landed in front of Daguerro. Deciding to go with it, she looked up to catch the glimpse of something disappearing over the top of the mountain. 'Was that a … dragon? I thought Zidane said only the green ones were here…'

Zidane glanced over at her once he put Choco in a safe place and noticed her looking at the top of the mountain. "What'cha looking at?" he asked.

She shook her head, "Just an odd looking cloud I guess." It had to have been. After all, how many dragons were white like that?

Zidane raised an eyebrow at her answer, "…Ok. Well, lets get inside before the dragons around here notice us."

She thought about saying that she would catch up and flying up to see if that really was just a cloud she saw. However, with the monsters around here she doubted Zidane would leave her alone in the open. So, Serenity nodded and followed the teen inside.

Once inside, Serenity found herself looking around in awe. Daguerro looked so unlike anything she had ever seem before! 'Even if I don't find anything, just coming here to see this place was worth the trip,' she thought.

Zidane looked over at her, "I'm gonna start asking around if anyone knows about this silver being. You go ahead and see if you can find anything on your friend and I'll meet up with you later."

Serenity nodded, "Ok, see you later then." Zidane nodded and waved before taking off down a corridor, leaving the blond sailor soldier behind. Serenity sighed, glancing around and seeing tons of shelves of books, "Now, where to begin…?" She decided that if she followed Zidane's direction, he would start asking questions if he noticed her looking through books rather than trying to find her "friend". So, because he took the corridor to the left, she decided to take the one to the right.

Sloshing through the knee deep water, she found herself in a small room with a shelf full of books and a ladder which led to the upper level. 'Well, I guess I should start here…' She quickly scanned the titles on the spines of the books, looking mythical beings and old legends in particular. From time to time, she would pull out a book that caught her attention, but would find nothing in it.

Sighing, she bent down to scan the books on the lower part of the bookshelf when she noticed a book floating in the water. Now, the book being in the water wasn't what caught her attention; many others had found their way there and were floating around. What caught her attention was the fact that there was a symbol on the cover, a symbol in the shape of an eight pointed star with a moon in the center. "What in the name of…?" she picked up the book and flipped it open. The pages were wet and most of the ink had either smeared or washed away, but what she saw made her eyes widen. It was a picture of three beings facing off. The smaller ones had smeared to the point that Serenity could only tell the colors: they were black and silver. However, the larger one was still distinguishable and she made him out easily; it was "Big blue". 'Was this a record of our battle? But this book looks old…how long ago was this written?' she wondered, looking over the picture.

She was studying it so intently that she did not notice the person come up behind her and glance at the book over her shoulder. "Pretty ugly huh?" Zidane's voice startled her and she nearly dropped the book. He glanced at the book and pointed to the blue creature, "Necron. He's pretty ugly."

"Necron?" she repeated the name, looking back at the illustration. 'So that's what he's called here…'

Zidane nodded, looking at the girl in front of him. She was studying the picture intently for some reason… Maybe she was trying to figure out if she heard of this guy before since Zidane could name him so easily. Truth be told, Zidane didn't even know there was a picture of that freak until he saw Serenity with one. Maybe he should shed some light on it for her. "…He's even creepier looking in person; had all those moaning voices that follow him everywhere."

This got Serenity's attention immediately, "You _know_ this guy?"

Zidane nodded, "All those people you met and I fought him awhile back."

Serenity looked at him in shock. Zidane had the power to take down Necron? The bastard took down Chaos in a matter of seconds! She suddenly understood why the others wanted to make sure she could hold her own before letting her loose; they wanted to make sure she could keep up. "…Did you defeat him?"

"Hm?" Zidane looked at her curiously.

"That Necron guy; did you defeat him?" she repeated.

Zidane shook his head, "He went back to whatever hellhole he crawled out of after the fight." He frowned slightly at the memory, "The last thing I heard him say was that it wasn't the end…"

'I am eternal,' Serenity finished in her mind as Zidane voiced the last part out loud. Yeah, that was the same guy alright…and if he was defeated by mortals on this planet, she had a feeling he'd be back… As she thought about this, she came to the realization that Zidane was talking to her. "Hm? I'm sorry?"

"I said did you find out anything about your friend?" Zidane repeated.

"Oh, um…no, there was nothing here…" she lied. "How about you? Did you find anything on the silver being?"

Zidane shook his head, "No, no one here has heard of her."

Serenity figured as much, but didn't voice that. "That's too bad…"

Zidane shrugged, "It's no big; there are still other places to look."

She nodded, "Right. Where to next?"

"Oeilvert," Zidane replied, motioning for her to follow as he walked towards the exit.

"Popular place?"

"Actually… no. No one lives there."

Serenity raised an eyebrow, "Then why are we looking there?"

"Well, Oeilvert is…different from most places on Gaia. I'm kinda hoping that there might be some sort of link to her there," he explained. Serenity nodded in comprehension. Even though she doubted that he would find anything about her, she could understand his reasoning. Besides, if he thought that there was something about her there, then maybe she might find out more about Necron there…

They walked out until Serenity stopped and groaned. Zidane turned around, "What's wrong?"

"Are you sure there's not a better way to get there other than by _that_?" she asked.

Zidane laughed at her reaction and took her hand, pulling her towards the waiting chocobo.

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	11. Chapter 11

ZT: Hey everyone! Hope everyone's enjoying the story so far. Anyway, here's chapter 10. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

CetlicHero – Kuja and Serenity? Hm…maybe. They might run into him at Oeilvert. After all, they are going to the same place. But then again, they did miss each other at Daguerro by just a few seconds.

Firehedghog – Yeah, pretty much. The bat mobile and spider powers came from A Person Writing a Review.

A Person Writing a Review – The story was about her in her current life. She has no clue how long she was out for; it's one of the questions she has. That scene with the chocobo just _had_ to be done! After all that butt kicking she's been doing, I had to show that she was still Usagi Tsukino at heart. Here's the update.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 10

"Seren. Seren! Hey wait up!"

Serenity felt herself running and realized that she was in one of her dreams again. At the moment, she was in what looked like a garden maze, running away from a voice which she was able to identify as Erymanthus's. It took her a moment to realize that she was crying as she ran. 'Ok, what's going on here?' she wondered as she felt herself pick up the pace more.

"Serenity!" she heard Erymanthus cry her full name this time, desperation in his voice for her to comply.

"Just leave me alone!" she heard herself yell as she ran, turning a corner. 'I'm turning the corner too fast…' Serenity sighed, knowing what was coming next. She was right. The next thing she knew, she found herself meeting the ground, scraping her bare arms. 'Ouch!' she winced; she never realized her body was so fragile in the past that just a few scrapes would sting as much as they did. She felt herself push up to her knees, but that was it, sobs wracking her body.

She wasn't sure whether she noticed it in the memory sequence or not, but Serenity heard a slight sigh behind her and heard footsteps as the Sun prince walked over to her. She heard him walk past her and stop. As a shadow hid her own from view, she knew that he was standing in front of her. She watched through blurry vision as the shadow showed that he knelt down. This was followed by him gently taking her hands in his own. "All these marks…they don't belong on the hands of such a delicate maiden," he said gently. A white light flowed from his hands to her own before trailing up her arms, healing the wounds she received from her fall.

For a while, the two sat there in the garden, Erymanthus holding Serenity's hands as she kept her head down, still sobbing slightly. Then suddenly she threw herself at him, sobbing into his chest. He immediately dropped his hold on her hands and wrapped his arms around her in comfort.

"What am I going to do? I can't…I can't" her sobs came out harsher, preventing her from finishing what she wanted to say. 'What? What can't I do?'

She heard the one holding her let out another sigh as he held her closer. "I know, don't force yourself." 'Yes! DO force myself! What's going on here!' she practically screamed in her mind. What was going on here?!

He was silent for a moment before speaking again, "Seren…why don't you run?"

This got her attention very quick and she looked up at him in surprise. "What?" she asked, for once sounding just as confused as she felt. The man with the hidden face nodded, "Run away from the palace, the moon kingdom, shoot get out of this galaxy even! If being here is that painful…"

She shook her head, "No, if I was to do that, I'd be letting down my mother and my subjects…I can't do that."

"…I'm not going to lie to you, I don't know how your mother would react to that, but there is already unease amongst the Moon Kingdom's citizens. I think they want you to go through with this even less than you do. You're their princess after all," he pointed out. "Why your mother agreed to this whole thing is beyond any of us, and no one would argue if you went into hiding at least until something could be done."

"But-"

"Seren, falling in love and marrying one of the nobility in our galaxy has never been forbidden before. So why would it start now? Right when you fall in love?" he asked, cutting off any excuse that she was going to start out. 'Ok, so my affair with Endymon was supported by my court. Makes sense since the scouts weren't in charge of killing Tuxedo Mask…' she thought, mentally sighing. She was in a forbidden relationship with the prince of Earth back in the day, she already knew this. It caused her emotional distress, that was a given. So why did her mind find it so important to relay this information to her?

Well, she asked, right? "If I run, my kingdom will go to war!" she cried out in protest.

Erymanthus shook his head, "No it won't. Endymon doesn't want to go through with this wedding any more than you do."

* * *

Serenity bolted upright, "What the hell?!" She was trembling but didn't realize it. She put a hand to her mouth in shock, 'Endymon and I…weren't in love?…They _lied_ to me?'

Her outburst startled her companion awake, and Zidane sprung to his feet, hands on his weapons thinking that a monster had come. Seeing nothing, he turned to look at Serenity. What he saw caught him by surprise. She was sitting with her hand over her mouth in a shocked manner, her eyes shining with unshed tears. "Serenity?" he asked gently, walking up to her.

Realizing that she had woke him, and not wanting him to see her upset, she lowered her head, "Sorry." Keeping her eyes lowered, she couldn't help but find it ironic that a similar situation had just happened in her dream/memory. 'What's next? Is he going to kneel down and take my hands in his own?' she wondered sarcastically.

What came next surprised her. Zidane sighed slightly and kneeled down, taking her hands in his own. "Serenity…what's wrong?" he asked gently. Zidane had done exactly what Erymanthus had just done in her dream, but that wasn't what surprised her. What did was that she realized for the first time… that they shared the same voice.

She looked up at him, a tear slipping down her cheek. Zidane smiled gently at her, his eyes showed concern though, as he wiped the tear away, "Hey…" Looking at that smile and those eyes, she felt as if a veil had been lifted from over her eyes as the shaded face of Erymanthus in her dreams suddenly came to view, and she found him to be identical to the man kneeling in front of her. 'By the gods…how did I not realize this earlier?' she asked herself. He was Zidane? Erymanthus's reincarnation was Zidane Tribal, her friend and partner…and a thief on Gaia? Why was he reincarnated so far from their own galaxy? After all, the rest of her court was reborn on Earth.

As she looked at him, she realized that he was still waiting for an answer and sighed, wiping away some tears. "Sorry for startling you…just a bad memory I guess," she answered half truthfully.

Zidane nodded slowly, moving so that he sat next to her, "Wanna talk about it?"

Serenity sighed, "Honestly? I would love to, but I don't know where to begin, or what it's all about…" She looked at him and saw his confused look. She knew she would have to explain something. She decided that maybe a little truth, but without major details may be the best way to go. "See I…I can't remember much about my past," she began, working on formulating the explanation in her mind. Seeing that Zidane was still listening, she continued, "I was told a bit about myself from people who knew me at the time. Along with the few sketchy memories I had of my past, I thought I had a good idea of what it was like. But lately…I've been having dreams about that time, dreams which I'm positive are memories. And well, I think something was hidden from me."

"Hidden from you?" Zidane asked confused.

She nodded, "I was told some things by those people, but according to my dreams or memories of whatever they are, especially the one just now, there was something completely different going on." She looked at the ground, "I guess it just shocked me because it means that those who knew about it were blatantly lying to me."

"…Maybe they were protecting you from something," Zidane suggested.

She sighed, "I don't know…I don't know enough to make any conclusions. But what I do know is that my mind is trying like hell to remember something, and from what I've seen so far, it was covered up for some reason."

He frowned at hearing this. Zidane knew how annoying it could be to find things out about something about yourself that went against all that you knew. He frowned slightly when he remembered seeing Bran Bal for the first time and his conversation with Garland about being the angel of death. Yeah, he knew that feeling well. They sat there for awhile, neither saying much until Zidane broke the silence, "Well, either way, whatever happens, you can't let what happened then control what happens to you now, alright? Trust me, if you let the past get to you, nothing good will come of it…"

Now it was Serenity's turn to look curious, "You sound like you've been through something like this before."

It took Zidane a few moments before he finally nodded, "Yeah…I didn't know about my past either. The first thing I could, and still can remember is being with Tantalus. But, last year I finally found out where I came from…lets just say it wasn't what I ever expected."

"I'm sorry to hear that," she said.

He shook his head and laughed lightly, "When I met my 'father', I nearly lost it. I wanted to give up on everything, to just disappear."

"That doesn't sound like you," Serenity looked at him with searching eyes. Zidane? The monkey boy next to her who always had a positive outlook on life? She couldn't see him being depressed at all, let alone to a point where he didn't want to go forward. It made her wonder what his story was, but seeing that she wasn't about to reveal her whole past to him, she didn't feel right asking him about his own.

"Well that's how big of a shocker it was. I almost got myself killed by an oversized turtle during that time. Luckily enough I had friends who saved my ass and helped me pick up my fallen pride. After awhile, I realized that, well, what happened in the past didn't really matter. After all, I am who I am, and just learning about something that happened which I had no control over wasn't going to change that."

Serenity listened to this and looked at the ground, "So what you're say is…even if I find out something mind boggling that throws all I know about my past into a loop, I shouldn't let it get the better of me, because it doesn't change who I am today, right?" Zidane nodded. "…I didn't know thieves could give such wise advice," she said with a smirk.

Zidane laughed at that, "I sometime surprise myself." He rubbed the back of his head, "It just sometimes comes out sounding right, y'know?"

Serenity nodded. She used to have times like that when she was Sailor Moon; she would randomly start spewing out words of wisdom which would make her feel like she was back as the moon princess. 'Maybe he's doing the same thing with his past self…' she thought

Both sat there in silence for awhile before they came to the sudden realization that they were just sitting there. In an open field…and open, monster infested, field.

"So…should we go into Oeilvert now?" Serenity asked, nodding towards the castle in the distance.

Zidane nodded, "Yeah, lets go before some of the creatures around here get violent…" With that, both got up and took off towards their destination, neither really knowing what to expect when they got there, and definitely not imagining they would find what they did…

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	12. Chapter 12

Kuja: Hello everyone. I'm standing in for ZT today because, well…(looks out the window to see Zidane driving the bat mobile with ZT hanging onto the top with her spider powers. When the bat mobile stops at a red light, ZT jumps off and takes off with her new super speed powers)

Zidane: (Sticks his head out the window) Hey! That's cheating!

Kuja: ….You get the idea. Anyway, here's the next chapter. ZT doesn't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Hope you enjoy it.

**Review Responses:**

Firehedgehog – WooHoo! Super speed! That's awesome!

A Person Writing a Review – Two review for one chapter?? That's awesome! Yeah I like getting lots of reviews, but I guess it's ok since the hits for this story is currently over 1800. That chapter was actually very hard to write; I spent a lot of time rewriting it and revising it to try to get it to come out ok. I'm still not very pleased with it, but it's better than it originally was. Anyway, here's the update.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 11

"Hey Zidane? Call me crazy but aren't the monsters in open fields usually stupid enough to bombard travelers?" Serenity asked as they walked towards the entrance to Oeilvert.

In truth, Zidane had been thinking the same thing. Last time he came here he was attacked multiple times before getting to his destination. But now…they had not come across even one monster. "Yeah…it's a bit strange," he answered, on guard in case one decided to finally make an appearance. He had to admit he was curious. Where _were_ the monsters? It was one thing for them not to attack, but he didn't even see any in sight! Usually he could see them far off in a field or something, but not this time…

Serenity was thinking the same thing. When she had flown over the continents, she had seen the lands crawling with monsters. She didn't expect this one to be any different, especially since she had been tested by Zidane's friends to make sure that she could hold her own. It made her wonder where they were then; with her experience with wild predators, if they saw something that looked like it was weak and alone, they attacked. She figured that Zidane and herself would look like that to these creatures since even the weak ones on the Mist Continent attacked, so why weren't they attacking now? An idea occurred to her and she put and hand on Zidane's shoulder to stop him, "Zidane, you said there's a barrier that prevents people from doing things in Oeilvert. What does the barrier prevent?"

Zidane stopped and turned to her, "It prevents magic and summoning…why?"

"I wanted to know what I can do in there… I think the creatures out here aren't around because they were recently killed," she answered.

The expression on Zidane's face said that it hadn't occurred to him that what she said could be a possibility, but it did make sense. "Do you think it's the silver being?" he asked.

Serenity wanted to say "no" but decided against it and shrugged, "I have no clue. But if there's someone or something in there that can take out all the monsters out here, then I want to know what I'm in for."

Zidane nodded, "Good point. Ok then, before we go any further, I want to warn you about some of the creatures in there. Then we won't have to worry about taking a beating from them and then running into whatever was out here."

Serenity nodded and listened intently as Zidane told her about the creatures. She made a special note not to go easy on the Epitaphs if she came across them when he talked about the mirror techniques they had. 'Who would have thought someone claiming to be you could be so deadly…' she thought. "Doesn't sound too difficult," she said, almost to herself.

"Yeah, the Epitaphs are the only ones that are a problem as far as I'm concerned. But like you said, it's best to be ready for anything if whatever took the creatures out here happens to be in there," he replied. With that the two began walking again towards Oeilvert.

"Think we'll have problems facing anything in there?" Serenity found herself asking as they walked.

Zidane shrugged, "Who knows, but I think we'll be fine." He looked over at her and grinned, "We're a team after all right?"

Serenity couldn't help but smile back, "Right." She wondered if her relationship with Erymanthus was this strong. If it was, then she was really glad that he wasn't reborn back in the time that the sailor scouts were; it would have been brutal to lose him in that battle as well.

Turning her head back to look at her destination, she let mind wander on that piece of information. If Zidane was the reincarnation of the prince of the sun, then that would technically make him a knight, a male version of the sailor scout. But…did she _want_ to put him through such hassle? She frowned ever so slightly at that. Even though they had never mentioned it, being a sailor soldier had been such a burden on all of the scouts, including herself. They had to give up all of the dreams they had for their 'duty' and 'destiny'. Ami gave up that opportunity to go to Germany to start her college early because of her scout duty. Makoto wanted to own a flower shop and restaurant. Considering they were meant to be the queen's body guards when they got older, she doubted that her Amazon friend ever did get around to starting that up…Minako had to leave England because of issues involving Sailor V… Rei practically dedicated her life to being a sailor scout once she became one. 'And don't get me started on the Outers!' she thought. Poor Hotaru didn't have the chance to live a childhood, Setsuna spent many years alone guarding the gates of time because of her title, and Haruka and Michiru… 'No. I won't tell Zidane. It's the duty of scouts and knights to protect their princesses and princes. I'm not going to make him protect me,' she decided firmly, looking forward with a new strength in her eyes.

Zidane glanced over at Serenity again when he noticed how quiet she was. He was surprised to see the look in her eyes as she walked forward. He had no clue what was going on in her mind, but she sure as hell decided on something! And there was no way she was going back on whatever she decided. 'What on Gaia could she be so dead set on?' he wondered. She must have still been thinking about it since she hadn't noticed that he was staring at her yet.

However, his thoughts on this were interrupted as he saw the look on her face suddenly change. "Zidane, what it that?" she asked with a tinge of worry in her voice as she pointed at something.

Zidane turned to look at what she was staring at and nearly fell back in shock. "Oh hell no…" he said lowly. Flying around Oeilvert was a silver dragon.

"That bad?" she asked, not taking her eyes off the dragon which obviously had not noticed them yet. "Worse," she heard him answer. Looking over at him, she noticed that he looked pale when looking at that dragon. Obviously, this thing was a tad bit stronger than the other creatures they had talked around her. "…How much worse?" she asked slowly.

"Worse to the point that I think we should just avoid it worse," he answered, slowly moving towards the entrance of Oeilvert and trying to avoid drawing the dragon's attention to them.

Serenity followed suit. She wasn't afraid of the dragon per say, but didn't want Zidane to know that because he might suspect something. Besides, she wanted to save her strength for anything inside of Oeilvert, although she figured that the dragon may have been the reason that there were no monsters here.

Once inside, Zidane sighed, "We'll be safer in here; that dragon uses magic for the most part, so it probably won't follow us."

"I guess…so where's that dragon from anyway if you weren't expecting here?" Serenity asked, not afraid to voice it this time. While looking at the ground far, far underneath Choco on their way over, it was obvious that there were no civilizations on this continent, so she figured that it wouldn't be a big deal if she didn't know much about this place.

"Well…" Zidane started but wasn't sure how to finish. How would she react to knowing that dragon came from another planet? How would she react to him _knowing_ that the dragon came from another planet?

He didn't need to find an answer just yet. As he was trying to think of what to say, the groan of a creature dying in the next room over caught their attention.

"There's something in here as well?!" Serenity asked out loud, turning her attention to the noise.

Zidane frowned and drew his weapons, motioning for her to follow. Drawing Destiny's Wrath, she followed, heading towards an opening to the next hall over. Getting on either side of the entrance, they both looked at each other. With a nod and a silent count to three, they entered the room at the same time. The first thing they noticed was an ogre fading into mist. The second was a person with silver, feathery hair beginning to walk away

Zidane, seeing the person, dropped his daggers in shock, getting the person's attention. The person looked surprised to see the genome at first then smirked, turning around completely, "Interesting that we meet again here of all places, is it not Zidane?"

Serenity looked the man over. Silver hair, pale complexion, a feminine look to him…she sheathed Destiny's Wrath and folded her arms over her chest, "Let me guess; you're Kuja."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	13. Chapter 13

ZT: Hey everyone! Well, now Serenity finally gets to meet the one and only Kuja…lets see how she deals with it. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

Firehedgehog – No super powers this time? That's fine, I have enough for now; plus I think I scared Kuja with the ones I already have…

A Person Writing a Review – Yay! I got the Muses now! Any upbeat music works for the most part, but the type of music I need depends on what I'm writing. I hate having short chapters; I have a 1000+ words per chapter policy on my stories. If I don't meet the daily quota I need to make it up in my next chapter. But I'm thinking of upping it to 2000+ per chapter to challenge myself more. Here's the update.

Cherryblossoms1987 – Thanks, I'm glad you like the story. FF9 is a really good game; I highly recommend it.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 12

Kuja looked at the woman who spoke his name with a cool expression. Who was this? When he saw Zidane, he had expected part of his old team to be with him, not necessarily his canary since she relied on magic so much, but perhaps that mercenary or rat, the bumbling knight, or even that awkward looking thing with the big tongue. He hadn't expected to see a black clad woman staring him down with sharp eyes and a cool look of her own. He also didn't expect her to move ever so subtly so that she was partially blocking his little brother who was still frozen in shock from view. "A bit protective are we?" he asked with a smirk, "And yes, I am Kuja."

She returned the smirk, "Common courtesy says that I should say something along the lines of 'Pleased to finally meet you,' but I don't think it counts when speaking to villains."

"I beg to differ. Just because I nearly destroyed the planet does not mean I lack manners. In fact, I happen to be quite fond of etiquette behavior," he replied smoothly.

"Really? Well you're the first evil mastermind I have come across to think that way. Shall we have a tea party after you conquer the world then?" she asked, keeping her tone of voice the same.

"Of course. You can be my guest of honor."

"Truly? Oh! I feel so honored!"

"Well it was your suggestion after all."

During this little sarcastic conversation, Zidane managed to snap out of his stupor and blinked a few times before picking up his dropped weapons and sheathing them. He then turned his attention to the two and raised an eyebrow, slightly disturbed, "Serenity? Why are you flirting with the planet's enemy?"

"It gave me something to do until you snapped out of your stupor," she replied, turning her attention to him.

Kuja put a hand to his forehead and feigned an overdramatic hurt look, "Oh? So you felt nothing my love? I feel so used."

"Sorry dear, I go for bad boys, not evil ones," she replied.

Kuja sighed, "Such is the life of an evil genius. Our only companions are silver dragons and elephant ladies."

"Would you two cut it out?!" Zidane exclaimed exasperatedly, although he was getting a kick out of the conversation. He looked at Kuja, "What's going on? I thought you died in the Iifa tree. Actually, scratch that, I _know_ you died in the Iifa tree!"

"The Iifa tree is the tree of life, Zidane. As easily as it can take life, it can give it," Kuja said smoothly.

"Wait…so if you're alive…then were _you_ the one who's been causing panic on the Mist continent?!" he asked, getting defensive again.

"…Would asking for more details on what you are talking about answer the question?" Kuja asked curiously. Someone was harassing the Mist continent? It sure wasn't him; he hadn't even _been_ to the Mist continent since his resurrection.

Zidane didn't look like he believed the older genome just yet. Serenity on the other spoke her mind, "I don't think it could be him, Zidane…although they did describe her as being pale with silver hair, everyone said that the being was female."

Kuja felt his eyes widen when she spoke, "A silver being…you two aren't speaking of Cosmos, are you?"

Serenity felt all the blood drain from her face as she turned quickly to face the man who spoke, "What?"

"Cosmos. Is she the one you're speaking of?" he asked again.

"We don't know her name. We came here hoping to find some information on her. Sounds like you know a thing or two…" Zidane responded.

"Not very much…just what I found in a book in Daguerro," he responded.

"What do you know about-"

"Hold on a second Zidane," Serenity cut him off, her eyes showed that she was on guard as she looked at Kuja, "Why are you looking for this 'Cosmos' in the first place?"

Kuja frowned slightly. This girl was sharp. "That is none of your concern."

"Uh, yes it is," she replied. "We're looking for this chick too; we wanna find out what she's all about, and now all of a sudden we find that you're alive and looking for her as well. What do you know that we don't buddy?"

Hearing the tone in her voice, Kuja decided it might be best to answer. He had put her on guard and from the look of those blades at her side, she had the advantage here if he made himself look like a threat to her. "Very well, I'll tell you what I know so far, but not here. There's an Epitaph around here; it went into the shadows when you two came in. Why don't we go out-" He was cut off by a bottle whizzing past his head and into the shadows closest to them. There was a groaning noise as the very creature he had just mentioned suddenly fell forward and disappeared as the Soft took its effect on it.

"There, now this room is monster free, so talk," Serenity said, closing the pouch she just got the soft from.

"Nice aim…" Zidane complimented, picking up the items that the destroyed creature dropped.

Kuja on the other hand studied the woman who threw the item. How did she know it was there? It was perfectly hidden and perfectly silent. The only reason _he_ knew it was there was because he had pinpointed the creature's presence, something that required a lot of training to master. He made a mental note not to get on her bad side until he found out who this woman was. With a sigh, he walked over to where a hologram used to be, "…I am looking for Cosmos because Garland needs her."

"Garland?" Serenity let the name roll off her lips. It sounded familiar, but she couldn't place where she had heard it before. She mentally shook her head; it must've been someone else she faced a long time ago or something…

Zidane had a different reaction, "Don't tell me that Garland came back as well!"

Kuja shook his head, "Not yet, and that's why he need Cosmos. Apparently she has immense powers when it comes to life. She is the only one who can create life just as it was."

Zidane raised an eyebrow, "I didn't catch that."

"Rebirth," Serenity answered, getting their attention, "Rather than bringing the dead back to life, her power is similar to making someone reincarnate, right?" She knew she was stretching it with voicing her knowledge, but she wanted to know what this guy knew. So far he hadn't said anything about the Imperial Silver Crystal, so she guessed she was good.

Kuja nodded slowly, "Yes, much like that…"

"Ok…so explain to me _why_ you're helping Garland? You hate the guy! Shoot, you're the one who killed him in the first place!" Zidane exclaimed.

"I'm aware of that Zidane. If I had my way, I would kill him again just for the hell of it, and that's why I need to find Cosmos," the silver genome replied.

Serenity blinked, "Ok, now I'm lost."

"Garland wants this person because she has the power to revive him. He wants me to take her to the Iifa tree so that the tree can absorb her healing powers and bring him back. Even if I don't do it personally, he will find a way to get her, but if I were to do his bidding, I could make his plan backfire," Kuja explained.

Zidane and Serenity exchanged glances before looking back at Kuja, "We listening."

"From what I can tell, the only way to stop Garland's plan is to either kill the silver being, or the Iifa tree itself," Kuja explained.

Zidane frowned, "Uh…Kuja? You do remember how big that tree is right?"

"And please don't tell me you want to kill Cosmos," Serenity added. If the answer was yes, she'd show them how easy that magic seal could be broken in a heartbeat.

Kuja shook his head, "No, I have no intention of harming her. To be honest, I don't think I would be able to do much against her unless I was in trance." He waited a second for the information to process with them before further explaining, "You see, from what I've found not only does Cosmos have the power to give life, but she can take it just as easily. She is a fierce warrior with powers you and I could only dream of." Seeing the looks on their faces, he guessed they caught on. "I want to find her to ask for her help in finishing off the Iifa tree for good."

"And if she refuses?" Serenity asked.

Kuja shrugged, "I'm pretty sure she won't. From what I have uncovered about her, Cosmos is one who has dedicated her life to protecting the innocent and fighting evil. The Iifa tree would definitely be something she would want to get rid of."

"Why is that?" she pressed.

"The book had some vague references to her being an enemy to Terra, which is where the tree came from. Also, the Iifa tree houses many souls, something which would be very tempting for Necron to come visit…and Necron was the last person she was known to have battled over five thousand years ago," Kuja explained.

'Terra huh? …Yeah I remember that place; the crazy nut jobs didn't heed my warning and wasted their planet's life away. I had heard of their plans to move the planet to other ones to take the life of others, but it never got off my "to do" list before my fight with Chaos and Necron…Wait a minute…_**I WAS OUT FOR HOW LONG?!!**_' "How long ago did you say this chick fought him?!" she asked in shock.

"It's unbelievable isn't it? But the last known records of this woman were from five thousand years ago," Kuja replied.

"Wait, you found this information on Gaia? Gaia was underwater five thousand years ago; so how does that work?" Zidane asked.

"I found the book here, but the language it was written in clearly stated that it was from Terra. How it got here is beyond me, but I found it all the same," was Kuja's reply.

Serenity stood there a little dumbfounded for a moment. 'Five thousand years…? I've been asleep for five thousand years? No wonder I don't know anything about this world! It could be someplace I know that had just changed over the years...'

Zidane looked over at Kuja, "…Do you have any clues as to where the person is?"

Kuja shook his head, "I came here hoping that there might be some information on her since that book was Terran. However I've found nothing yet."

Zidane thought about this awhile, "…Then come with us."

Both Serenity's and Kuja's attention focused solely on him instantly. "What?" both said at the same time.

"We're looking for Cosmos. We're looking for Cosmos. We have the search parties. You have more knowledge than we do. We both don't want Garland to be revived. Sounds like we could gain a lot from teaming up," Zidane pointed out.

"I find a small flaw in your plan Zidane; this is me we're talking about," Kuja said.

Serenity nodded, "All I've heard about Kuja is that he's the 'bad guy.' How are the others going to take to him teaming up with us?"

Zidane thought about it, "…We'll talk to Dagger first. If we can get her to go along with it, Rusty will too as well as Cid. The others will take some convincing, but I think I can get them to understand."

Serenity sighed, "If you say so…" She glanced at the silver haired man who had a look in his eyes that clearly said he wasn't convinced.

"Very well, I'll accompany you on," Kuja said after a pause.

Zidane nodded, "Great, then we should probably head towards Madain Sari."

"Hey hold on a second Zidane," Serenity stopped him before he could turn to leave, "Just because we know this chick's name now doesn't mean that we can skip out on our searching. We're in charge of looking in Ipsen's castle as well remember?"

Zidane hung his head, "Damn, that's right…"

"Well it shouldn't be that hard to search through. We'll search through it fairly quick and go to the Outer Continent afterwards," Kuja said simply. "However, before we do that…we'll have to deal with all those monsters which are flocking in near the entrance."

Zidane and Serenity shared a glance before peeking out of the room towards the room with the exit. True to Kuja's words, there were many monsters prowling around the room. Zidane groaned, "Great…"

Serenity frowned and opened her pouch, pulling out multiple Softs, "Kuja, how good is your throwing arm?"

"Good enough," he replied, catching onto what she was planning. He took some of the Softs from her and began throwing them at the Epitaphs in the room. Once they went down, Zidane and Serenity went in and started attacking the other creatures in the room.

* * *

With a grunt and a slash, Serenity brought down another Ogre. This was getting annoying; every time it looked like they were making a dent in the room, more creatures came practically out of nowhere. What was worse was that they had now run out of Softs, so now any Epitaphs that came in the room could cast their mirror image if they didn't take it down quick enough. She had managed to keep from getting too banged up, but Zidane she noticed had taken a couple hits. She wanted to get over to him to give him a hand, but those damn Ogres kept getting in her way.

A noise behind her caught her attention and she cursed. An Epitaph had spotted her and looked like it was about to cast its spell. However, before it could do anything, something black hit it and it went down. 'What was that?' she wondered, looking at where she saw it come from. She saw Kuja heading her way, pulling out more dark matter as he did in case another Epitaph decided to appear.

"I'll be your backup and medic. Let's get to Zidane and get out of here," Kuja said. Serenity nodded and the two began running towards the blond genome, slashing and dark mattering every creature that came their way. As they neared him, they both too notice of the fact that Zidane looked tired out, and needed an energy boost fast.

"Zidane!" Kuja yelled out, throwing a bottle of something the young genome's way.

Zidane caught it easily and took a quick glance at what had been thrown at him. An elixir. That would definitely help. He gave a quick nod in gratitude before using it right before getting hit by an Ogre's attacked. He stumbled back, but the elixir had already given him back his strength to take the attack, plus he felt a boost all of a sudden. He grinned as he noticed that his body was glowing, "Hey Serenity. You were curious about trance before right? Well here it is!" A blinding light erupted from Zidane, making Serenity and Kuja stop in their tracks. When it died down enough for them to see him, Serenity noticed that Zidane suddenly looked very, very…pink.

"Both of you take cover," Zidane ordered as he charged up an attack. Serenity looked like she was about to say something, but Kuja knew what was coming and pulled her around the corner, pushing her against the wall furthest from Zidane and using his body as a shield. "GRAND LETHAL!" Zidane's voice echoed through the room before the two saw flashes as Zidane's attack took out every monster in the room. 'Holy shit! THAT'S what trance can do?!' Serenity thought as she saw the flashed from behind Kuja's silhouette.

As the attack died down, Serenity was able to let her mind focus on other things, and suddenly came to the realization of just how close she and the silver haired genome were. "U-um…" she began, but he moved back some as she did.

"Sorry, I've been on the receiving end of that attack before on more than one occasion," he explained, turning to head back to where Zidane was. Serenity followed.

When they turned the corner, they saw the light around Zidane die down as his trance wore off. "You two ok?" he asked, wiping his brow as he turned to face them.

Serenity nodded, "I'm fine. How about you, Kuja?"

Kuja nodded, "I'm not harmed. Now lets get out of here before more monsters decided to come."

The two thieves nodded in agreement and the three ran outside. Once outside, Kuja sighed and flexed his hands, feeling the power flow through them again now that they were out of Oeilvert. "Much better…" he said aloud.

'I couldn't agree more,' Serenity thought as she felt all her power course through her again.

As Zidane waited for the two mages to adjust to getting their powers back, he realized something. "Ah dammit!"

"What is it?" Serenity asked, turning her attention to him.

"Choco can't carry three passengers."

His answer made Serenity's heart jump. Choco couldn't hold three people? That meant they weren't going to ride it again! "Oh, such a shame…" she said, but it was obvious that she was about to jump for joy.

"Not fond of flying?" Kuja asked.

"No, just not fond of flying on Chocobos," she answered.

Kuja nodded, "I can understand that..." Pondering a moment, he looked at Zidane, "You can still use your bird; I have my own mode of transportation.

Zidane looked confused for a moment when it donned on him, "Oh! Of course!" He smacked his forehead to emphasize how obvious it was.

Serenity was confused however, "You do?"

Kuja nodded and whistled. A few seconds later, the silver dragon which Zidane had been so terrified of earlier landed not too far from them.

"Nice ride," Serenity commented.

Zidane shrugged, "Ok then. So you take your dragon and we'll take Choco."

"Uh, actually I think I'll just walk," Serenity answered nervously when the bird's name came from his lips.

Zidane sighed, "Are we going to have to go through this again? It's faster to fly, Seren!"

"Yeah, I know, I'll catch up," she said.

"What happens if we go over an ocean?"

"I'll swim."

"Across an ocean?"

"Sure. It's not impossible."

"It's not probable either."

"I'm not riding the golden turkey."

"Yes, you are."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are."

"You can't make me."

"I think I can."

"Try it and you'll never have kids."

Kuja watched the argument with mild amusement. She was very adamant about not riding the Chocobo. Fortunately, he had a very easy answer to their problem. "If you don't want to ride the bird, then ride the dragon."

Serenity turned her attention from the argument to Kuja, "Seriously?"

"Why not? There's more than enough room," he replied.

She studied him a moment to see if he was serious or not before nodding, "Alright, thanks." Hearing her answer, Kuja got on the silver dragon and offered his hand to help Serenity up.

"We'll meet you outside the castle," Kuja told Zidane as the blond got on the chocobo and took to the air at the same time they did.

Zidane nodded and the two flying creatures began flying North West towards their next destination.

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	14. Chapter 14

ZT: Hello everyone. WhooHoo! My finals are DONE! And I move out the rest of my stuff today. So no more stress and more time for writing.

Kuja: You know, I think you're one of the only people I out there who cringes at the word "school" yet does backflips when you get to write something.

ZT: Yeah well, that's what makes me…me!

Kuja: Of course…

ZT: Alright on with the show! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

A Person Writing a Review – Oh no, it has nothing to do with your review; it's just a personal goal I have for myself. But lately I noticed that it's getting too easy to do 1000 words so I wanted to up the challenge a little. And it wouldn't affect how often I update; I would still do that daily. Here's the next update.

Taiki – Thanks. Here's the update

Firehedgehog – I loved writing that part. It's actually completely different from how I originally planned it but it worked out all the same.

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 13

Serenity looked down at the world below her as the silver dragon glided through the air. Now that she was on a larger, sturdy looking creature, she wasn't afraid to be so far from the ground. It was a good thing too; it gave her time to think about all the new information she had learned since she met Kuja. For one, who was this Garland guy? She kept telling herself that she must have met another person with the same name once before, but every time she said that, she found herself doubting it. She tried to remember if she heard the name when she was on Terra since it apparently had something to do with this, but could come up with nothing. And then there was this whole ordeal of Zidane knowing Kuja in the first place. What was their history? She knew that Zidane knew him from what he mentioned before, but with how the two reacted when they ran into each other in Oeilvert, she figured that they knew each other more than she expected. The question was how…what exactly was Zidane's role in the war last year? And how is he connected to the silver man sitting behind her?

Speaking of the man behind her…what was his story? Why did he attack Gaia in the first place? Was it all voluntary? She doubted it. Although she wouldn't put it past someone to try to mosey up to an enemy by "joining forces", she couldn't help but feel that he was being sincere when he presented his case to them. When he agreed to join Zidane and herself and helped them take out the monsters, she had suspected that he was just helping in order to get out of the magic less place. But then he didn't attack when they got out, even though he had that dragon at his command. Plus, there were his eyes…Her own blue orbs grew distant as she remembered looking into those dark ones. It had been when he helped her get onto the dragon that she got a _very _good look at them. Although she had looked into them plenty of times while in Oeilvert, he had been on guard and she couldn't look at was really reflecting in them. But that time, she saw it: he was being tormented by something, something big. She had a few guesses at what it was, but didn't voice it; it wasn't her place to look into such things…

"For one so close to Zidane, you sure don't speak much, do you?" Kuja's voice broke her thoughts and she turned to him, having been sitting sideways it was easy for her to do. He had noticed that she seemed to be sorting things out in her mind, but with every passing moment seemed to be more and more confused by whatever she was wondering about. "You have many unanswered questions don't you?"

"Just a few…" she answered.

"Any that I could answer?" he offered.

"Yeah…but they might get me thrown off the dragon," she replied smoothly, turning her gaze back towards the scenery to try and hide the look that had crossed her face.

Kuja felt a smirk cross his lips at this point. "The clothes and the makeup, right?"

"Yes!" she turned her attention to him again since it was out now, "What's with the getup anyway?"

"Well no one has ever given me a decent reason to change my style. Don't get me wrong, it has been suggested before and I know it's a bit...exotic, but unless I'm given a proper reason to change it, I'm not going to," he answered easily.

"…Would it be a big stretch to think that it has been men that have suggested the change in style, not necessarily about the makeup, but the clothes?" she asked, turning her head again.

"Yes, it was. Women never suggest it. They usually just swoon," he answered.

"I can understand that," she replied.

"Really? Then perhaps you can give explain the reason for this to me," Kuja said.

"Do you really want the answer?"

"Of course, give me a decent reason and I'll consider it."

"Alright then…you're gonna push me off the dragon if I say it," she stopped herself.

This earned her a chuckle from the silver genome sitting behind her, "That bad or can you not think of a reason?"

"No I have the reason. It's just gonna get me thrown off and it's a long way down," she answered.

"Now I need to know the reason. I swear I won't throw you off. I doubt I have the strength to throw you off anyway."

"Perhaps, but it would take you asking the dragon to do one airborne trick to make me fall off, and I don't trust the turkey to be able to catch me in time."

"I swear I won't make you fall off."

"…Fine. The reason the attire catches so much attention is because you focus on covering the wrong region. The lack of clothing on the lower half makes focus go down to there rather than at your face. And since no one is paying attention to your face, they don't realize that you're wearing makeup that looks like a woman when your voice clearly says you're a guy," she answered, her cheeks burning with embarrassment as she did.

Kuja felt his cheeks warm a bit himself. Well, he _had_ asked for the answer, and of course he had known that his attire would attract attention, but he wasn't expecting someone to come right out and explain it to him. "I'll have to remember that next time I speak to my tailor," he said, getting a laugh from the blond in front of him.

"And the makeup?" she asked.

"I'll wait on that one."

"That's no fun! I'd bet you look very nice without the makeup. Shoot I'd even venture to say that you'd look handsome."

"Oh? And I don't now?" he asked with a slight smirk, knowing that he was going to get either a sarcastic answer, or a brutally honest one.

It was the second. "Honestly? As you are right now, you kinda remind me of a scantily clad clown that's trying to pose as a woman but is failing to an extent that just makes one think that you shouldn't even try it…"

"Wouldn't that also be called 'failing miserably'?" he asked.

Serenity shook her head, "No, you can pull off the feminine look to some extent, so it's not failing miserably, but it's still pretty bad. Failing miserably would be if you were a big guy with a beard and ripped muscles trying to pull off your style."

"…You do realize you just gave me the most disturbing mental image I have ever had in my life, right?"

"Don't worry, I got it as well," she answered.

Before their conversation could go any further, a whistle caught their attention. They looked over to see Zidane on Choco flying up close to them. "How are you two holding up?" he asked.

"We're ok. Just having a conversation about clowns and clothes," Serenity replied.

"Ah, so the fashion police have finally been called on Kuja eh?" he asked with a grin.

"No we were discussing your obvious lack of knowledge on how to wear a belt," Kuja replied easily.

"I'm hurt 'big brother'! You're allowed to have a unique style and I'm not? That's brutal!" the blond genome exclaimed, feigning a hurt expression.

"Ok, hang on a second," Serenity stopped any retaliation Kuja would have made. "I've heard both of you call each other 'brother' now…"

"That's because, technically, we are brothers," Kuja replied.

"Say what?!" she exclaimed, looking at Zidane for confirmation. He sighed and nodded. "B-But you're an enemy to Gaia. And Zidane is, well…not."

"Perhaps telling our story would best explain this," Kuja suggested.

"Yeah, I guess it's time I let you in on it…and it will pass the time," Zidane said. With that, the two began retelling the events that happened, starting from the death of the original Terra to the defeat of Necron and their adventure in the Iifa tree gone wild. All the while, Serenity listened intently, absorbing all the information given to her. 'Whoa…I guess it's a good thing I decided not to tell Zidane about Erymanthus; he doesn't _need_ anything else added on his plate! And Kuja…I guess I was right about that something in his eye…after all that he did, I would be searching for it too…'

After finishing their story and answering a few questions that Serenity had to clarify some things, they noticed Ipsen's castle come into view. "Good we're here…" Zidane sighed as the chocobo and silver dragon landed outside. As he got off Choco, Zidane pulled out two concealed weapons and handed them to Serenity, "Here, you'll need these."

Serenity looked at the weapons that Zidane gave her and raised an eyebrow, "Daggers? They hold the least power out of any thief weapon!"

"I know. Ipsen's castle is a strange place. Half the castle is upside down. In the upside down areas, weak weapons are strong while strong weapons are weak," he explained.

"I see…and then once you go back to right-side up, everything goes back to normal, right?" she asked. Zidane and Kuja nodded. "Ok, well that's good to know…shall we?" she asked, gesturing towards the stairs. With that, the three of them walked inside the castle, all three wondering what they would find inside.

* * *

To make a long story short, all that the three found were monsters. However, between two skilled thieves and a master red mage, they didn't pose much of a threat. When the three reached the room where the mirrors used to be, they decided to take a quick breather.

"Well so much for finding anything here…" Zidane sighed, sitting on the steps.

"Yeah, but if we had bypassed it, chances are there would have been something of use here," Serenity replied, looking at the mural on the wall to keep herself occupied. She couldn't put her finger on it, but something about the mural made her study it. She was unsure why because it was just a map of Gaia; she had recognized it from when she looked at Zidane's world map before. But still…she could _feel_ something about this mural…something familiar was radiating from it…

Kuja noted how intently the woman of the group studied the map and walked over, "Is something wrong?"

"…Who made this mural?" she asked finally.

Kuja was a bit surprised by the question, but thought for a moment to find the answer, "…I would think Garland would have. He's the only other Terran who was here before I did, and this was already built when I came. Why?"

Serenity shook her head, "Just curious I guess…"

Kuja didn't think that she was "just curious" but let it go for the moment. "Well, we should probably head out then," he suggested.

"I couldn't agree more!" Zidane said, getting to his feet. Serenity nodded as well and followed the two back the way they came.

As they walked, Serenity couldn't help but feel as if they were being watched. She glanced around, but saw nothing. They walked a little further before she had the bright idea to turn around, and found herself looking at what looked like a giant eyeball with two legs and bat wings. She unsheathed Destiny's Wrath since they were still on the regular part of the castle and got in a battle stance, "Guys! Company!"

Both men turned and cursed, one silently, and the other out loud. Zidane drew his weapons, "Damn! A Veteran!"

Kuja on the other hand cast holy first before talking, "Don't curse it Zidane! Attack it before-" He was cut off when the Veteran cast a magic spell. The three felt like time froze as they waited for something to happen. Then all of a sudden, a grim reaper appeared in front of the Veteran, slashing it and killing it instantly.

Serenity looked at it in shock, "What the hell…?"

"Roulette," Zidane answered, sheathing his weapons, "The attack is a sure kill but it the one who cast it is not out of the game."

"Owch…" she replied. She shook her head, "Well, I don't know about you guys, but I don't want to wind up facing that again, so let's get out of here before-" She stopped short as she suddenly realized that a shadow was looming over her. She turned quickly, but was not fast enough. She could only watch as the grim reaper looking being slashed at her, leaving a mark which made her world go dark before she could feel a pair of strong arms catch her and hear a strong flare attack being cast on the creature which had back attacked her.

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	15. Chapter 15

ZT: Hey everyone. Sorry it took a few days to get this update out. I started on this chapter then got a massive writer's block. I think I've shaken it now, so updates should go back to normal. Anyway, on with the show. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

A person writing a review – I had to put that clothes part in somewhere; it just would not be right for her not to comment about his clothes; he wears a thong for crying out loud XD.

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Taeniaea – Thanks, here's the update.

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Firehedgehog – Chaos's reincarnate? It's possible. You'll find out soon enough. Soon as in the end of this chapter soon ; )

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Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 14

"Odango…Odango…" Serenity felt herself beginning to come to as she heard the voice saying her name. It sounded so familiar…where had she heard it before? Whoever it was was calling her 'Odango', which meant it was someone who knew her back as Sailor Moon- oh! She opened her blue eyes to see dark ones staring back down at her. He was wearing his red outfit with the rose tucked in the pocket just like usual and his long black hair tied back. He kneeled down and helped her sit up.

"Seiya…" she gasped, realizing that this was no dream; he was really there.

Seiya nodded, "Odango, what are you doing here? You're not due here for a good long time."

"Here? Where's here-" before she could finish her sentence, what happened right before she blacked out came back to her. The Veteran, the roulette game, the shadow, and the grim reaper… "Did I die?" she asked in shock, looking at Seiya.

"That's what it looks like, but it doesn't make sense. You're supposed to live much longer than you did," he answered.

His answer made Serenity feel like someone had just ripped her heart out. "Why!? Why am I supposed to live much longer? I thought Destiny was through with me once I destroyed Chaos! Now I'm supposed to do more?" she cried out. His was silent and Serenity defined it as a yes. She felt a stinging sensation in her eyes as she tried to hold back the tears that wanted to fall, "I don't _want_ to be Cosmos anymore! For thousands of years I've dedicated my life to hunting down Chaos because it was my 'Destiny' to do so! He's gone now; turned to stone by a creature who has other enemies beside myself that can stand up to him. So what is the point of me being there now?!"

"Odango…" he whispered his nickname for her, holding her close for comfort. He didn't think it was fair either, which is why he volunteered to come to greet her when everyone heard that she was coming to the afterlife before her time. He wouldn't give her the whole speech of needing to go back because it was her duty. No as far as he was concerned, actually as far as many of their friends were concerned, she was done long ago. Why Destiny still forced her to go onward was beyond him, but it was still doing it.

For awhile, they just stayed like that, Serenity letting herself get comforted by a dear friend and Seiya comforting a woman who he could very easily say that he loved. "What do I need to do…?" she asked finally. She looked up into Seiya's eyes, "What do I need to do to finally be able to finally end all of this?" Before Seiya could open his mouth to say anything, she looked down, "I'm tired…tired of always fighting, tired of watching others grow old and die while I'm sitting looking like I did however many thousands of years ago, tired of having to lie about who I am because beings like me are only myths in the majority of today's worlds, tired of having to walk away from people once I reveal true self for their own safety even though I want more than anything to stay…I'm tired of being alone."

Seiya let out a sigh as he processed what she said. How was he supposed to answer after that? She was lonely and she didn't seem to live for herself anymore. She was nothing more than Destiny's favorite little doll to play with. Unfortunately Destiny seemed to fail to realize that its doll was also a living, breathing woman who had a will and dreams of her own… "…I don't know what Destiny wants you to do, but I do know what all of us want you to do." His voice got the attention of the former bunny rabbit as she stared up at him questioningly. He smiled, "We want you to live…for yourself."

Serenity looked at him confused, "Myself?" Even before she became Cosmos, everything was all about making her a better princess or future queen; the fighting, the study sessions, shoot she even went to the dentist because the scouts wouldn't follow a "toothless queen" (although she did find that funny later on when she looked back at it). When was the last time she had done something just for herself? Not for Princess Serenity, not for Sailor Moon or Sailor Cosmos, not for Neo Queen Serenity, but for Usagi Tsukino, the girl she had been reborn as? As she wracked her brain for an answer, she found that she couldn't remember any off the top of her head, none that didn't wind up getting her involved with her other forms that is. Even now, she had been with Tantalus for awhile and, although she had to admit she did enjoy her time with them, the whole reason she had joined them was because she needed to chase down an enemy of Sailor Cosmos's.

Seiya nodded, "Live because _you_ want to, not because it's your duty. If something comes up that needs your attention, then deal with. But until then, live the way you want to, not the way that others want you to."

"But Seiya-" she tried to say something but Seiya stopped her.

"No 'but's Odango! You've been a servant to your Destiny long enough. Live your life for once!" he interrupted.

"Well I have no objection to that…" she replied, rubbing the back of her head, a habit that had increased since she had met Zidane.

"Then what?" he asked.

"Well…you're telling me to live and all, and I just had that fit about what I would need to do to finally be able to die…I'm kinda already dead" she pointed out.

Had Seiya been standing up at that moment, he would have fallen over. "Well…that sort of kills the whole point of that conversation…" he said, feeling like an idiot.

Serenity laughed at his reaction, causing him to laugh as well. After awhile, they stopped laughing and Serenity sighed, "But you're right; if I had the chance to live again, I'd definitely live for myself." She let her eyes look towards the ground as she remembered her life on Gaia for the past month…As she dwelled on it, she found herself looking forward instead of at the ground, "You know something? I think I had already started that." Seiya looked at her as she continued, "Sure it was the ordeal of finding Necron and hiding that I'm Cosmos that got me to meet them, but nothing I've done with Tantalus has been very…productive as far as maturing my other forms goes. Well, other than finding out that one of them was the reincarnation of one of the only princes in my court. If anything, it's just been a lot of fun…well except for the part that I was helping Gaia's heroes track down myself…that part's just annoying."

He raised an eyebrow at this, wanting to ask her exactly how the helping to track down herself thing worked, but decided that it might be for another time. "What's this about a prince? I thought the scouts were your court."

"Right before I met you guys, I learned otherwise. There was a prince of the sun named Erymanthus, and a high priest named Panagiotis who were as close to my past life as the scouts were, maybe even more so." She narrowed her eyes slightly as she remembered the dreams, now able to talk to someone about them, maybe she could sort through them. "The dream where I was introduced to them was the only one I had for the longest time, then all of a sudden they started up again about a month ago. In these dreams, it's like I'm reliving a memory; I have no control over what I say or do, but I have no idea what the 'me' in the dream is thinking, so it leaves a lot of what is happening to speculation…From what I can tell there is something going on that I'm supposed to hide from the rest of the palace which involves the scouts, myself, and the two others. What it is though is beyond me…"

"Well, whatever happened was in your past life; if it was big you would have been informed about it, right?" he asked.

"That's what I thought at first, but then I began to doubt it…and it became more apparent that something was up with my last dream. See, according to the last one…" she looked at Seiya, her eyes showed the confusion she felt about this subject, "Endymon and I never wished to marry."

"_What?!_" Seiya exclaimed, "But you and he were supposed to be married and live in Crystal Tokyo as the queen and king of earth with your pink haired kid!"

"I know, and that's why I want to know what's going on," she replied, "I find it odd that these two were never even mentioned until I had a dream about them, and now as I remember various things about them, all of a sudden I get the impression that my life on the Moon Kingdom was not all that I was told."

Seiya frowned, "Well, if the scouts were helping you back then, then they must have supported whatever you were doing…I know that they have been slowly regaining the memories of their past lives since their death; perhaps they can fill in the blanks for you."

"Great idea! Where are they? We can ask them right now," Serenity exclaimed, getting to her feet.

"Erm…that's a little easier said than done," Seiya answered, not bothering to get up because he knew she was going to sit back down in a second anyway.

"Why's that?" came the suspicious question.

"Well, your body and soul are still in a state where you can be revived if anyone knows how to bring you back from the dead. Of course, that technique would take someone with some serious power to cast, so the chances of that happening are pretty much infinitely small, but we still have to wait here until that time period is over," he explained.

"Are you serious?" she muttered in a tone that clearly said, "who thought up that rule?" and plopped back down next to Seiya. She sighed, "So how long do I have to wait?"

"Well it varies from person to person, but it should be no longer than a day," he replied.

"Alright then…" she leaned against his shoulder, "Wake me when it's time to go."

Seiya blinked in surprise when she leaned against him, then processed what she said. "You're going to sleep?" he asked incredulously.

"Why not? There's nothing better to do," she replied, eyes still closed.

"But…you're dead! Dead people don't sleep!" he protested.

"Oh yeah? Watch me," she countered, letting her mind drift off.

* * *

"Serenity…?" Ha! What did she tell him! Serenity smirked in her mind when she heard the familiar chocolate-like voice that belonged to Panagiotis. His voice sounded a little distant though, and she could tell her eyes were closed. He must have been trying to wake her up; he had done that in another dream and this one felt like that. "Serenity?" he called again softly.

"I'm telling you she's not gonna wake up," she heard Erymanthus sigh, "She sleeps through everything." 'I do not!' she protested in her mind, her body not wanting to open its eyes yet to glare at the man.

"Well I'm still going to try," Panagiotis told his companion before trying to coax her awake again.

She heard her blond friend's incarnate snort, "Good luck with that. The only time I've ever been able to get her up I had to get her attention by mentioning a bunch of various food names, taking her favorite boot, and eventually throwing a Gyshall Pickle at her….at noon!"

'So that's what that smell was? Oh you little pain!...Wait.' She remembered that scenario clear as day…and that wasn't Erymanthus that she chased. She had chased Zidane, meaning that was a blond genome talking, not the prince of the sun. And that meant that she wasn't hearing Panagiotis's voice, but the voice of his reincarnate! She forced her eyes open to see who owned the voice.

The owner of the voice looked down at her in surprise to see her awake before sighing with relief, "Welcome back to the living."

Her eyes widened slightly when the voice of the priest came out of the man's lips. She opened her voice to speak, but could only get out his name, "Kuja?"

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	16. Chapter 16

Kuja: Hello everyone. Yes, I'm doing the disclaimer for ZT…again. Apparently she's chewing out her internet provider or something. Well whatever, she doesn't own Sailor Moon or Final Fantasy IX.

**Review Responses: **

Black Lady of Emptyness- Glad you like it so much; here's the update.

Firehedgehog – I guess you liked it then huh?

Setsuna-3000 – lol here's the update.

Taeniaea – I'm glade you like it, here's the update.

A person writing a review – Sorry to keep you on edge with the updates; I just moved back to my house on Sunday, so I'm getting back into the swing of things. If my updates become too spread out, I give you permission to message me, telling me to get to work. You didn't mention anything about thongs, but you did mention the clothes comment that Serenity made, and that was the reason I had her mention it. By the way, you gave me your IM the other day. I'm not usually logged onto it, but if you ever do wanna chat, mine is Ziporatsuki1 for AIM.

bluSport4378 – I have not seen _any_ other FFIX SM crossovers out there, if you find any let me know. I'm glad you like it so far. Here's the update.

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 15**

Serenity looked up at the two a little dazed, half being caused by her being brought back from the dead, and the other from the fact that she just discovered who the second mystery person in her dream was. 'So Kuja is Panagiotis's reincarnation? That would be less surprising if I didn't know that he was once an evil villain…' she thought. Well she would think about that later, at the moment she had other things to think about, like for one, how was she alive when she was, well, dead a second ago? She tried to sit up but discovered that her body was too tired to let that happen and fell back, almost hitting her head on the ground if it weren't for the silver haired genome supporting her.

"Take it easy; you don't wanna kill yourself right after you were just brought back…" Zidane told her gently.

"I guess…what hit me? I remember seeing that thing behind me and…"

"Another Veteran back attacked the group. You got the lucky number in the roulette game," Zidane answered, his tone changing as he did. She couldn't put her finger on why, but Zidane looked more annoyed than concerned at the moment. What had happened when she was gone?

Speaking of which… "…How am I alive?" she asked tiredly, looking at either of the two for answers.

Zidane rubbed the back of his head, but not in his usual embarrassed or nervous fashion, but in an annoyed one, "Well Kuja's a red mage, meaning that he can cast white magic. The spell 'Life' is supposed to be powerful enough to not only raise the dead but also give them enough strength to hold their own…"

"Well I'm definitely alive, but I don't think that holding my own will be happening unless you have an elixir tucked away somewhere," Serenity replied.

"Yeah I know," Zidane answered, pointing accursedly at his older brother, "That's because the genius right here, who I might add is responsible for creating the black mages and a good deal of mist monsters, did not know how to cast the stupid spell. I had to kill off about twenty monsters with him trying to revive them before he got it right! And even still, he couldn't get the healing bit into it!"

'Well that explains why he looks so annoyed…' she thought.

"Well forgive me for not being perfecting a spell on the first few tries of doing it. It is no easy task to master such techniques," Kuja said coolly.

"Oh please. You mastered Curaga and that one is much harder to learn!" Zidane countered, his tail flicking in an agitated manner as he did.

"And you would know this from experience?" the silver haired genome smirked as the blond tried to reply, but couldn't think of a good one, so just glared in response. "And besides, back then I learned Curaga because it was a great asset to me. However what would be the point of learning Life when I had no allies that couldn't be replaced and there's no way to cast the spell on yourself once you're dead?" he added, just to make the blond genome glare harder as he again couldn't think of a comeback. He shook his head, "Speaking of Curaga…" He let healing energy flow from his hands and into the woman he was supporting.

Serenity blinked a few times when she felt her strength rush back into her. She pushed herself up into a sitting position with relative ease this time. As she did, she felt a breeze on her back where it should have been covered by her shirt. Looking over her shoulder, she groaned; there was a massive rip in the back of her top where the scythe had hit her. "Great…this was my favorite top too!"

"Be grateful that it was the top that was not able to be saved and not you," Kuja said, helping her to her feet.

Zidane nodded, getting over his desire to re-kill his brother for the time being, "Yeah, but we should get you a new one…the closest store to here is probably in Alexandria, so we should probably head there next."

Serenity frowned, "But isn't that out of our way?"

"A little, but we can't have you wandering around with your back exposed like that; monsters will jump at that," he explained.

"You have a point Zidane; she can't go around fighting with that top on, but really is going to the Mist continent that necessary?" Kuja asked.

"Do you have a better idea?" Zidane asked.

"I just thought that it might be easier to grab something from my palace. It is along the way to the Black Mage village and Madain Sari after all," he answered.

Zidane raised an eyebrow, "You have female clothes at the Desert Palace?" Kuja nodded. "….Why?"

Kuja rolled his eyes at the question. He knew perfectly well that his brother had some idea in his mind that he wore them himself or something along those lines. "I kidnapped Hilda remember? Do you think I made her stay in the same attire throughout her whole stay? On the contrary; if I were to stand her company, she would need to stay fresh and clean."

"So you bought her a wardrobe?" Serenity asked in disbelief.

"Of course; she didn't bring that many herself because she didn't exactly plan on staying for as long as she did," Kuja replied with a shrug.

This caused the blond girl to sigh, "Man…I wish _I_ had an enemy which would do that for me…" Actually, technically Diamond did get her that one dress and probably would have gotten her more, but he wanted her to be his so she didn't think that one counted.

Kuja laughed lightly at what the blond had said. Hilda had made a comment herself about how he treated her too well to be considered a hostage at his palace. She thought he needed more work in the keeping hostages department until she saw his containment cells which had floors that opened up to pits of lava.

As he remembered this, he kept his eyes on the blond as she studied the area, probably trying to figure out when they had gotten practically to the entrance of the castle. When they were fighting the monsters, Zidane suggested that they start heading towards the exit, so that in case Kuja couldn't get the spell down, they could find and harass a moogle for Phoenix down. Of course that was only as a last resort; too much time could have passed trying to find a moogle around here and they may not have been able to revive her.

That last thought made him inwardly frown. He enjoyed this woman's company; she had a personality which made it easy for him to speak with her, something that he hadn't been able to do with very many before. What's more, although she mentioned it a bit when they first ran into each other and would still joke about it a little, she didn't really seem to care about the fact that he was an enemy to Gaia and almost destroyed the planet. That was something that he found both refreshing, yet disturbing. It was nice to be talked to as a person for once and not some mastermind. However, because he was in fact that mastermind, he found it strange that she was not the least bit suspicious of him. She had only heard the stories about him personally, and was Zidane's age so she _had_ to have known what was going on during the war last year, so why was she so at ease with him?

"Hey Kuja," Zidane's voice broke his concentration and he glanced over at his younger brother as a gesture that he was listening. "So are we gonna go yet or what?" Zidane asked.

The silver haired genome nodded, "Yes let us leave this place."

* * *

A quarrel over riding the chocobo and a trip over the ocean later, the three found themselves in the middle of the desert…fighting an Antlion.

Zidane let out a war cry and brought his Orichalcons down upon the beast, killing it. "What gives Kuja? I thought you said this pit was the entrance!"

Kuja sighed, casting Flare onto another that came out of the pit as they got closer, "It is; the Antlions changed pits."

"Some loyal pets..." he muttered, slashing to finish off the one that Kuja cast Flare on, only to be knocked off his feet by a sandstorm as yet another came out.

"I have no control over what the Antlions do while I'm away. I used to have to clear them out every time I returned from Treno," the older of the two brothers replied, casting Curaga on himself as Serenity threw a high potion at Zidane to fix the damage the Antlions had caused.

"Are you guys sure you don't need any help?" Serenity asked from her spot on the sidelines, growing increasingly bored as the two men fought. The two had decided that she should sit out on the battles until she had some proper covering to protect her from attacks, so she was stuck playing medic. Of course she was not pleased with this one bit and tried to protest, but they didn't listen, despite the point she made about Kuja wearing less clothing than she was anyway (although it almost convinced Zidane until Kuja suggested casting some spell called "Ultima", then he backed down really quick). So now she was stuck throwing medical supplies at them from the sidelines.

"We're fine," the two replied in unison as they took down another Antlion.

Serenity let out a huff of air in annoyance at the answer; sure the Antlions weren't that strong, but there were a lot of them and it was wearing the two down! 'Stubborn boys…' she thought, turning her head in an angry, "I don't want to even look at you" manner. It was a good thing she did, because the other two were far too busy to take note of some…things, heading their way. They were still a ways off, and were moving at a very slow pace, but there was no doubt they were coming to try to back-attack the unsuspecting fighters. She narrowed her eyes; the creatures looked like giant red and purple blobs with eyes all over the place. That was the exact description Zidane had given her for a powerful creature known as "Hecteyes", another of the roulette casting creatures of Gaia. 'And I do _not_ want to get hit by that again!' she thought, looking back over at the guys, about to tell them what she saw.

But then she stopped herself. They already had their hands full with the Antlions; adding Hecteyes to the list would be suicide! She looked back at the oncoming creatures, then back at the two men. Their fight was making a lot of noise…and those blobs didn't look like they had mouths to let out a noise if they were killed…Making a decision, she turned back to the creatures; they were at a distance still so even if they did make a noise, the much closer Antlions should drown it out. Hopefully, they would also be loud enough to drown out her voice.

Standing up, she faced the oncoming creatures, closing her eyes and concentrating, calling forth the power given to her by one of her sailor senshi. Holding her palm outward, she cast the only attack which she could possibly get away with casting completely without drawing attention to herself. "Dead…scream…" she whispered, a purple ball of energy coming out of her palm and hitting the two creatures. They swayed a moment before the tops flopped forward and they turned to mist.

When that was done, she quickly glanced at the area around them to be sure another creature wasn't coming before turning her attention back to Zidane and Kuja. She watched them awhile before they finally took out the last Antlion in the pit. "You know…that may have been a little faster if you had let me join in," she said as she watched them catch their breath.

"Unless you have an attack that would have went in and nailed all those creatures at once, I don't think it would have been any faster," Zidane replied, wiping some sweat off his brow.

The attack "world shaking" came to mind, but Serenity didn't voice it for two reasons. The first was because if she mentioned the attack, she might have to let them know she's Cosmos. The second reason was that it took all she had to keep from saying "Too late for that" to what Kuja said next: "We better get inside before some other creatures decide they want to attack."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	17. Chapter 17

ZT: Hey everyone! Hope everyone likes the story so far.

Kuja: Haven't you already said that before…like almost every time you start an update?

ZT: I dunno…have I?

Kuja: Yes.

ZT: Hm…I should be more creative then…I'll go ask Snoopy and the singing cat band for tips.

Kuja: You mean Josie and the Pussycats?

ZT: No…the singing cat band…it's from before you joined my muse cast.

Kuja: …I feel disturbed now.

ZT: You should, I found the soda stash.

Kuja: Crud…

ZT: Anyway, on with the show. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

Zodiac1231 – I'm glad you like it so far; here's the update.

A person writing a review – I had issues with the status ailments myself; I wasn't sure whether I wanted them to affect her or not. But since she's already freakishly strong on Gaia, I decided not to make her immune to status ailments right off the bat so that she wasn't completely invincible. About the fansite and her being reborn automatically, I don't think that's necessarily true. The Amazon Trio had to revive her using their little wish granting thing when her dream mirror was destroyed, and it was Fiore's flower that revived her in the first movie...I dunno maybe those were exceptions. Anyway, here's the update.

Taeniaea – Thanks

Sue01 – Don't worry, more is still coming. Here's the update.

Bluesport4378 – Ok thanks. I'll be keeping tabs on yours as well (Oh yes, I saw it and have reviewed it D. Maybe I should challenge others to write FF9SM fics as well...) I like to keep things about storylines as accurate as possible. I kid you not when I'm writing this story, I have a map of Gaia up on my computer and a website with all the Gaia mist monster info up so that I even keep the location of creatures and their powers right.

CelticHero – I love Seiya! I had to use him at least once in the fic, but I think I'm going to have him make another appearance later on in the fic…Here's the update.

Firehedgehog – Yeah…I can see him prancing around in dresses as well. It's not that hard to imagine at all actually. Heheh.

Taiki – Here's the update.

Setsuna-3000 – You like my fic that much? I feel so special now! D

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 16**

'Geez! How long did Kuja plan on keeping Hilda here for?' Serenity wondered in shock as she looked around at the massive walk-in closet she was standing in. Actually, massive was an understatement; it looked bigger than the Tsukino's residence was! Although, there was one problem with the clothes; pretty much everything she had seen so far were dresses. But there had to be just some shirts here otherwise Kuja wouldn't have suggested they come here… "So where oh where could the little shirts be…?" she wondered aloud, finding more dresses as she walked. As she walked, she noticed something that she hadn't spotted in any other closet before. 'What are stairs doing in a closet?' she wondered. Then a possible answer occurred to her. "Oh no way…" she walked up the stairs, and found her suspicion to be correct. 'The closet has a second story?' Walking further inside, she was relieved to find that this portion of the closet had clothes other than dresses. Hopefully she would find a top that would work with her clothes. Although she had to wonder, what guy could be so into clothes that he would buy his own hostage a whole wardrobe…?

* * *

Kuja turned his head away from the table and Zidane as he sneezed.

"Bless you," Zidane said, still staring at the tea Kuja had brought him while they waited for Serenity. He was usually okay with the beverage, but there was still that small part of him that was worried that his older brother may have done something shady when he wasn't looking.

Kuja noted this and sighed, "It's not poisoned."

"I know…" Zidane replied easily, still looking at his cup.

"No you don't," Kuja said, "but I understand why you're so on edge; I would be too if I were in your position. After all, you're sitting here and were just offered a drink by someone who just a year ago was doing everything in his power to kill you. Someone who, eleven years ago, dropped you onto Gaia so that you could not take my place. It would be idiotic to think not consider the fact that I may have tampered with it…"

Zidane blinked and absorbed what Kuja had said. Although the silver genome stating what he was obviously thinking would make some consider taking a sip of the tea, Zidane was not eased anymore, and decided to push the conversation to something that didn't involve the liquid in the cup in front of him. "Yeah, but you haven't done anything to us yet…and you seemed pretty sincere back at the Iifa tree in you dying moments," he replied, knowing he was contradicting his own personal reasons for suspicion as he said that.

Kuja chuckled, "That may be true, but I spent quite some time with the elephant lady before I went against her."

"And if you were truly going to betray us, you wouldn't have mentioned that; you could have just given away the game plan," Zidane answered.

"That may be true, but I could also be giving you a false sense of security. My final moments, allying with you now, it could all be just my way of getting to the hero of Gaia, just so that I can kill you in your sleep one of these nights when you least expect it."

The blond genome tried to respond, but for some reason, Kuja's ability to come up with that right off the top of his head unnerved him a little, "You really are a natural criminal mastermind…"

Kuja nodded, "Many of the things I came up with for the war took hardly anytime to plan at all." He looked at his own tea cup and frowned slightly.

Zidane noticed this, "What's up?"

"…Serenity."

Hearing the name of his partner got the attention of the younger genome really quick, "What about her?"

The silver haired genome looked over at Zidane, his expression a little curious, "Do you not find it odd? You know how I was back then, and I've heard some of the stories about myself that have become fairly popular…yet she only seemed to be wary of me for a minute no longer than what a person meeting someone for the first time should toward someone."

Zidane frowned himself when Kuja voiced this. He had noticed it as well; how Serenity seemed to trust Kuja enough to ride a dragon with him after less than a few hours of knowing him, and even to insult his clothing choice, something that Zidane himself was still a bit intimidated to do. He had heard the stories that floated around himself. All of them made Kuja out to be a bit worse than he actually was, courtesy of over exaggeration…She had to have heard at least one of them, and living on the Mist Continent, she had to have witnessed his dirty work at least once…so why wasn't she wary of him?

The blond genome didn't have the answer to that, but he sure as hell was going to get it, even though he knew that pressing a woman…a woman with sharp, pointy daggers at her side…who had a temper when pressed…looking through clothes… was suicide. "I'll be right back." Standing up, he took one more look at the tea cup before downing it with one gulp and walking out the door. If he was lucky, the tea would in fact be poisoned and he would drop dead before he got to the room Serenity was currently occupying…

* * *

Well today wasn't his lucky day…Zidane stared at the doors in front of him. They led to the room which Hilda had stayed in during her time as Kuja's hostage, and was currently the room which Serenity was looking for a spare shirt in.

He lifted his fist to knock on the door but stopped himself. He wasn't sure why, but he was much more nervous than he should have been. After all, he was just asking her a question after all. He shook his head, of the thought. Serenity was no idiot; she should be wary of Kuja. So why wasn't she? His lifted his fist again, but stopped again. 'Oh come on! I'm a member of Tantalus! We always get what we want!' he scolded himself. However, as soon as he scolded himself, he felt a tiny part of him argue back. But was this really what he wanted? When the thought crossed his mind, he frowned slightly confused; why wouldn't he want to know the answer? It wasn't like she was hiding something big from him…or was she? That thought stopped him in his tracks. Part of him laughed at the thought, but the part of him which seemed to not want to talk to her had a reasonable point to it. Sure he had gotten close to her since they met, but how much did he really know about her. The answer came to him as a surprise when he realized that he knew practically nothing about her past; she never spoke of it, and he had never asked about it…

As Zidane had his internal debate, he got so lost in his thoughts that he did not even notice the door in front of him open and a blond stare at him with a mixture of surprise and curiosity. She let him stay in his Lela land for awhile longer before bringing him back down to Earth- I mean Gaia.

"Zidane?" Serenity's voice brought him out of his thoughts, and he nearly jumped out of his skin when he realized she was standing right in front of him. He noted that she was wearing a new top now; it was still black with no sleeves, but had a tie design which reminded him of a corset. The ribbons that tied the corset were the same color as her sash. "N-nice outfit," he said, trying to make it sound like he was just checking up on her.

She didn't buy it. "What's wrong?" she asked, seeing the look in his eyes that clearly said he was having one massive fight with himself about something.

Zidane swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat and looked back at the woman in front of him, "Can we talk?"

She blinked, feeling a little ill at ease inside when he asked this. "Uh…sure," she said, opening the door wider so that they could go inside.

He took a breath and walked inside the room. Aside from the necessities a bedroom should have, there as a small table with a few chairs. Zidane swiveled one around and sat on it backwards while Serenity sat on one regularly.

"So…what did you want to talk about?" she asked.

Zidane looked at her, trying to figure out how to ask his question. He was here so there was no going back now, but now he had gotten himself worried about what possible outcomes the answer to the question might have. "You see…um…well, that is…" 'Spit. It. Out!' he mentally yelled at himself. "Whyaren'tyouafraidofKuja?" he finally spit out.

It came out so quickly that Serenity couldn't decipher what he had said, just that it involved herself and Kuja, and started with 'Why'. "Could you repeat that a little slower please?" she asked.

He took a breath and started again, "Kuja. You've been around, so you must have heard all those stories about him, but you don't seem threatened by him at all. Why is that?"

Serenity was taken aback by the question. "Because…" she shrugged, making it look like she was making up an answer, "I'm a super being who really doesn't care about Kuja's powers because I'm much stronger than he is. And another reason is that I haven't heard the stories because I was in a coma until the day I met you, so I didn't even know a war happened until you told me.

Zidane shook his head, grinning despite his nerves at her answer, "Ok, now how about without the half assed remark."

'Eh…if you only knew that that's the majority of the truth…' she thought, before sighing. "Zidane…did I ever tell you that I witnessed a person's death?"

He looked at her in surprise, "No, that never came up."

She nodded, "Well, I had. From the moment I met this guy, he was bad news. Everywhere he went trouble followed, most of it caused by him, and the rest caused by those who worked with him or the one they worked for…Well, one day he discovered something that would have caused a lot of people to suffer…but wound up letting himself get killed instead of sharing it…because he fell in love with the person who was my best friend at the time, and didn't want her to be one of those who suffered." Zidane looked at her curiously, wondering where this story was going when she continued. She looked down at her hands, remembering that night as clear as day (AN: I'll give a cookie to whoever knows which character she's talking about), "Right before he died, he looked right at me and said that he guessed that piece of information would stay a secret. I'll never forget that look in his eyes…he was remembering and regretting all the things he had done at once, and was trying to find some way for at least someone to forgive him for what he did." She looked at Zidane, "Kuja's eyes remind me of his. He wants more than anything to be forgiven and will do whatever it takes to get it even though he knows it is probably a hopeless cause…It takes a lot to do that, and it would be much easier to just go back to his old ways of destroying Gaia, but he's not. He's looking for ways to repent, starting with us. That's why I can trust him, because I know he doesn't mean us any harm."

Zidane sighed, crossing his arms and resting them on the table, "So…you're not afraid of him because he needs someone's forgiveness? Well if you forgive him then he doesn't need it anymore."

"My forgiving him won't mean shit," Serenity replied, getting his attention again, "Kuja wants the forgiveness of certain people, and I think you're at the top of that list."

The blond genome sat up straight at this, "What? Me? Why me?"

"Because he feels he wronged you the most," she answered. "Think about it Zidane, he dropped you on Gaia when you were still a kid. So, all your life you looked fruitlessly for your home. Then, he starts a war which you get involved with. Then, by some god's sick humor, you find out that the enemies of Gaia are in fact your family, with Kuja being your older brother. Then there's the fact that he tried to kill you on more than one occasion…come on Zidane, even I have to admit this is pretty bad!" she pointed out.

"I know…but that's not what I meant. I thought Kuja already knew what I felt about that. I mean, I went back for him when the Iifa tree was going rogue for crying out loud!" he exclaimed.

"So your actions say you might forgive him, but did you ever voice it?" Serenity asked calmly. Zidane sighed and shook his head. "Well, _do_ you forgive him?"

Zidane opened his mouth to answer, but then closed it, thinking about it for a moment. He then looked back at her, "Yeah, I guess I do."

Serenity smiled, "Well, I think that's all he needs to hear…"

* * *

Outside the room in the hall, Kuja closed his eyes and smiled when he heard Zidane's answer, 'Thank you…'

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	18. Chapter 18

ZT: Hey people! I brought the cookies for those who guessed the character right. I won't keep you guys in suspense, it was Nephrite when he died protecting Molly/Naru.

Kuja: Yeah, but a lot of people guessed that it was either Diamond or Sapphire, so I've decided to give out a second place prize.

ZT: Huh? What second place prize?

Kuja: I baked brownies for all who guessed the silver haired prince or his brother.

ZT: …You bake?

Kuja: (Shrugs) A man has to have a hobby.

ZT: Right…ok well congrats to blusport4378 and A Person Writing A Review, you guys get cookies.

Kuja: And for guessing Diamond or Sapphire, here are your brownies Moon Fan and Firehedgehog.

ZT: Ok, well on with the show. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

A Person Writing a Review – Yeah, the game really could have done better on Necron, but he does inflict status damage a bunch which could be a pain for Serenity. But don't worry, he's not the only one she's going to have problems with…I've been wanting to have Serenity make a comment like that for awhile now, but couldn't find an opportune time to have her say it. Enjoy your cookie!

Taeniaea – Thanks

Firehedgehog – Thanks. No, it wasn't Diamond, but it was a good guess.

Moon Fan – Actually it was Nephrite, but good try. Here's the update.

Blusport4378 – Yep, it was Nephrite. That is one of the SM villain deaths that stuck with me; it was so sad! Here's the update.

Setsuna-3000 – Thanks. Here's the update.

Sue01 - Thanks, here's the update.

Taiki – Here's the update.

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 17**

Well, they were back on the road-er- in the sky again, this time headed east towards Madain Sari. As they headed towards their destination, everyone was fairly silent as they let themselves get lost in their own anxieties. It was strange, even though this was one of the few destinations where they wouldn't have to fight monsters and should be able to pick up two more traveling buddies if the summoners were still there, all three dreaded the end of this flight more than most.

For Serenity, her reason was simple enough; she was next to positive that those blasted moogles would "Kupo" her until she lost her 'Kupo" mind! Plus she wasn't sure if they would be able to recognize her, especially if she were near Kuja so they could compare the two.

Zidane was, to say the least, about ten seconds away from having a nervous breakdown even though he seemed perfectly fine on the outside. He already volunteered to be the one to speak with the others about Kuja since he knew them the best. But because he knew them the best, he knew that all the heroes of Gaia would not be very thrilled about not only the silver haired genome reappearing, but also about him joining the team. They hadn't been able to comprehend the fact that he wanted to stay by Kuja's side in the Iifa tree even though some of them had witnessed family deaths before, so why would they give in to him joining them so willingly now? And he was going to speak to Dagger and Eiko first…this was not going to be fun to say the least…

Kuja was worried for two reasons. One, he was returning to the ruins of a city which Terra was responsible for destroying. He knew for a fact that the two summoners would not take kindly to him, and he may wind up running for dear life from Bahamut and Madeen. The other reason was that Madain Sari was entirely too close to the Iifa tree for his liking. Were Garland to find out what the silver genome really planned to do when he found Cosmos, he would make Kuja's life expire right then and there. Needless to say, Kuja didn't want to die just yet…

On that last note, Kuja found himself suppressing a sigh so as not to get the attention of the woman sitting in front of him. He hadn't told them about the fact that Garland held his life in his ghostly hands. There didn't seem to be a need to back when he first ran into the two. After all, at that time they were only useful because they had already started the search that he was just beginning. But now…things were different. He didn't know when it happened, but somehow he had transitioned from thinking of them as being somewhat useful but not necessary, to something he couldn't even begin to describe. Whatever it was, it reminded him of how Zidane and those other heroes of Gaia used to be. What did Zidane call them again…a team? Kuja knew the definition of the word, but at the same time, he wasn't sure that described what the two seemed to be to him. He mentally shook his head; whatever it was, it was making him feel a bit guilty for not telling them.

While thinking about this, the red mage happened to catch a glimpse of Zidane starting to fly Choco lower to the ground. "What's he doing?" Serenity voiced the same question he was thinking. Kuja gave a command and the dragon flew lower as well, eventually landing just outside a fairly large building suspended over a canyon. "Is something wrong?" the silver haired genome asked, watching Zidane get off the yellow bird and following suite along with Serenity.

"Yeah, a thought just occurred to me," Zidane replied. "Dagger and Eiko are expecting a yellow bird, but how are they gonna take seeing a big silver dragon flying through the air?"

Serenity frowned, "Why? The dragon just signals that Kuja is around, and we aren't planning on keeping that secret anyway."

"I know, but remember back at Oeilvert? I nearly had a heart attack when I saw the dragon, and it immediately put me on edge. I don't think it's a good idea to put those two on edge right before I mention that this guy's joining the team," Zidane answered, jabbing a thumb towards his older brother as he said this.

"Zidane has a point," Kuja said after a pause, "I have wronged those summoners in many ways over the years. It would take a miracle as it is to get them to accept me; taking the chance of them being frightened by my dragon is not a wise move at all."

Serenity looked at the two incredulously, "Ok, but how exactly are we supposed to get to Madain Sari then?" She gestured to the mountains that covered the general direction their destination goal was, "In case you didn't notice, there're a lot of mountains blocking the way."

"That's why I stopped right here," Zidane pointed at the suspended building, "This is Conde Petie. If you go through it there's a path that leads you through the mountains to either Madain Sari or the Iifa tree depending on which fork you take. This is how I got to those places when traveling on foot."

"Sounds innocent enough…Are there any monsters on the path?" Kuja asked.

"A few, mainly Gnolls, Ochus, and Trolls, but they're not that powerful at all," Zidane answered.

The silver mage nodded, "Very well, we'll take the path then."

"Ok, great." Zidane hopped on Choco, "I'll see you guys there then."

"Hey wait a second! How come you're not coming?" Serenity asked. Kuja had an expression on his face that said he was wondering the same thing.

"Well, see I want to have as much time to talk to Dagger and Eiko before Kuja comes as possible. And aside from that…they only let people go onto the path as pairs. So see you guys!" With that Zidane gave Choco a slight kick and the bird flew into the air.

"…Was it me, or did Zidane look like he was trying not to laugh at the 'Two at a time' part?" Serenity asked, looking after the flying away bird.

"It seemed that way. Come, let's find this path that Zidane mentioned." Serenity nodded to what Kuja said and followed him to the entrance.

They were immediately stopped by a group of guards. Now, being stopped by guards is not very surprising when you are a stranger to that land and just plan on waltzing in with a former evil mastermind at your side, but it is a little surprising when you discover that the guards are, in fact, dwarves…who yell "Rally-ho!" right at you.

"Rally what?" Serenity asked, making a face.

"Rally-ho's oor sacred greetin'!" said one of the dwarves.

"If ye dinnae say Rally-ho, then ye cannae enter Conde Petie," added another.

Serenity and Kuja exchanged glances before turning to the dwarves, "Rally-ho!"

"Rally-ho! Ye can pass!" the guards said in unison, moving to the side so that the two could enter.

"That was interesting…" Kuja said quiet enough so that only Serenity could hear. She giggled in response as they walked around in search of the path Zidane mentioned.

After searching around for awhile and stopping at a shop to restock on supplies, they finally found the entrance to the path next to the weapons stand. However, there was one small problem that Zidane had failed to mention.

"What do you mean we can't pass?!" Serenity asked incredulously.

"Only those who've received the ceremony kin pass," said one of the guards blocking the way.

"The 'ceremony'?" Kuja asked, "Which ceremony would that be?"

"Speak tae His Holiness if ye want tae know," a guard answered.

'His Holiness huh? I suppose he's talking about the priest of Conde Petie,' Serenity thought. "Alright, do you know where he is?" she asked.

"Ah dinnae ken," the guard replied.

"Right…thanks anyway," she said, turning back around.

Kuja followed suite, "So we need to find a priest I suppose."

"I guess…What do you think this 'ceremony' is?" she asked as they walked around.

"I have no idea," he replied, "But I think it might have been the reason why Zidane was trying not to laugh."

"Same here. Hey! Look over there," Serenity pointed over to a dwarf walking around on the opposite side of the room. He was wearing garments that looked much different than the ones the other dwarves were wearing, "Think that's the guy?"

"Well there's only one way to find out," Kuja replied, heading over to where the dwarf was standing.

Serenity took her time getting over there, and slowed her pace even more so when she saw Kuja's facial expression as he spoke with the dwarf more. Obviously what he was hearing was _not_ what he had expected to hear. Finally, despite her slow pace, she caught up to the two. Apparently she hadn't slowed enough, because she was able to hear Kuja' words, "So…what you are saying is that this is a binding ceremony between two lovers…and the path to the 'Sanctuary' as you call it is only reserved to those who are making the pilgrimage to complete the ceremony or to those who have already completed it?"

"Aye methinks ye understan'," replied the dwarf.

'So it's a marriage ceremony… no wonder those guards were so adamant about us not going on the path…' she thought. In all her journeys, if there was one thing that every planet had in common, it was how special a marriage ceremony was. But that also threw a wrench in their plans. There was no way they could go through the path then, unless they got…married themselves…She mentally smacked her head, oh she was gonna _kill_ Zidane when she got her hands on him!

"Thank you for explaining it," Kuja said with a bow as the priest left. He turned to Serenity, "I'm going to kill that little brother of mine."

"Yeah? I'll help," she said with a slight huff, "So now what?"

"Well, we could always ride the dragon and hope that no one sees us," Kuja suggested.

"Yeah but I've already seen Bahamut in action; I personally don't want to take the chance of having that dragon attack me," Serenity replied.

The silver haired genome nodded, "I thought so…Other than that, I guess we could go through with that ceremony. I doubt it's anything that would bind us according to the other laws of Gaia…in fact I don't even think it would count here unless one of us is a dwarf, and I for one know I'm not. You?"

The blond smirked, "Of course not; I am, as it were, a princess of a moon far from here that was destroyed long ago. We people of the moon were called 'Lunarians' and were most definitely not dwarves."

Kuja laughed, "Very well, 'princess'; it seems we have nothing to worry about then."

"So we're going through with this ceremony then?" Serenity clarified as they headed towards the priest.

"Of course, my love. Who would have thought our playful banter would take us this far…" Kuja replied with a smirk.

"Oh yes," she replied sarcastically, "It is beyond my wildest imagination, the two of us being bound in Holy 'matrimoonae'." With that the two broke out in laughter…

That is until they came up to the priest. "Ye two wish tae undergo the ceremony?" he asked in shock.

Serenity nodded, "Yes please…is there a problem with that since we are not dwarves?"

"Eh, nay lass, but tradition states that only a man an' a woman can be blessed in holy union," he answered.

Both looked confused for a moment before it donned on Serenity. "Oh, you think that we're both-" she stopped mid-sentence and began to laugh.

Kuja looked at her curiously, wondering exactly what she had figured out, "Uh, Serenity?"

"Kuja, you're wearing a skirt, thong, and makeup on a continent where there are very few humans," she answered as she got her laughter under control.

Kuja looked at her confused for a second before what she said donned on him. He looked at the priest horrified, "I am not a woman!"

"Boot ye be wearin' clothes like a lass! The other lass be the one I would expec' tae be a lad. She wears the pants after all…" he replied.

"But…but!" Kuja tried to speak, but the priest was too busy thinking at the moment to notice.

"Maybe it be hair color which determines the lad from lass in humans…that other lad had blond hair too…" he thought out loud.

Kuja tried to speak again, but Serenity beat him to it, "Ah, ya got us. Yeah, I'm the man."

"_What?!_" Kuja exclaimed.

She ignored him, "Since I'm so feminine looking often humans call me a woman, but I see there is not fooling you, Your Holiness. Please, join the woman I love and me in holy matrimony where the people of our land will not."

The priest looked at them in pity, "Ah, I see ye two love each other dearly tae come this far. Of course, give me time tae prepare and I'll start the ceremony."

Serenity nodded, "Thank you."

As the priest left to get prepared, Serenity glanced over at Kuja who she had noticed had grown very quiet as she spoke to the priest. She saw that he looked petrified and had turned a very unique shade of blue. "Kuja? Are you alright?" she asked.

"I'm going to kill Zidane…" he said numbly.

Serenity laughed, "Oh come my dear 'future wife'; we need to get ready as well."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	19. Chapter 19

ZT: (Runs in and slams the door behind her)

Kuja: What took you so long?

ZT: Sorry, my mother decided that I needed to get out of the house more…and took me to work in her kindergarten class. That and I had a serious writers block.

Kuja: Ouch…

ZT: Yeah, well I'm free now and the block is gone for the moment, so on with the show! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

blusport4378 - haha, nope he hasn't changed yet. Serenity has to buy him a pair or Wranglers or something. That part actually popped into my head in a spur of the moment, I'm glad you like it. I'm also enjoying your story, keep updating it; I'm getting into it! Here's the update (sorry it took so long).

setsuna-3000 - if you want to see a clip of him, just go to youtube and search for Kuja. All these videos about him pop up. He looks very feminine. Here's the update.

zodiac1231 - Glad you like it.

A person Writing a Review - Yes Kuja looks hot even with all the makeup on. Image how he would look if he actually dressed as a man. Swoons while Kuja looks a little disturbed I'm still doing some tweaking on when they arrive at Madain Sari, but I already know it's gonna be fun and probably involve the moogle welcoming commitee again (poor Serenity). Anyway, here's the update (sorry it took so long to post).

Taeniaea - Thanks, here's the update.

Firehedgehog - I get that image as well haha. Here's the update.

Black Lady of Emptyness - Thanks. I enjoyed writing that part very much. Here's the update.

Taiki - Thanks. Here's the update.

giggles - Thanks. Yeah I had to think about Serenity's personality for awhile. A lot of people either make her out to be a complete ditz (which she is in the series) or stone cold after being Cosmos, or being this wise, serene person. I wanted to make her more grown up compared to her old self because she did have all that time to mature, but still show some qualities of her old self to show that she was still Usagi at heart. Here's the update.

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 18**

Serenity glanced over at her silver haired companion with a mixture of curiosity and concern. Kuja had not said a single word ever since he had been accused of being a girl and she was beginning to wonder if he needed a doctor or not. Looking at his face, she saw that he seemed to just be focusing on walking through the path. However, she noticed that his eyes seemed to be focusing on something inward instead of out. 'Well duh!' she told herself, 'He's probably still in shock! What I said really didn't help in the matter, just sped things up with that dwarf.'

After walking awhile longer in silence, Serenity finally couldn't take it anymore and decided to see if she hadn't become deaf. "You still alive over there?" she asked.

Her voice broke Kuja from his thoughts and he looked at her, "I'm sorry?"

"You've been distracted ever since we left Conde Petie," she replied.

The silver haired genome sighed, "Sorry, I was still thinking about that dwarf."

The blond put on a fake pout, "Oh I see. Here we are on our way to our honeymoon, and you're thinking about the priest." She let out a dramatic sigh, "Some person I chose to become the new Mrs. Tsukino!"

Kuja was about to retort with his own sarcastic remark when the last part of her sentence caught her attention, "Tsukino?"

She nodded, "My family name. It means 'of Moon' or 'of the Moon'."

"So translated your name is 'Serenity of the Moon'?" he clarified.

She nodded, "Yep, that'd be me."

Kuja stored this piece of information about the girl next to him away for a moment, "Interesting, your name sounds as if it could belong to a noble. If there was a kingdom by the name of 'Moon' on Gaia, I would be tempted to ask if you were the princess of it."

Serenity smirked, "Well whose to say I'm not the princess of the Moon itself? After all, you yourself are from another planet."

He laughed at this, "True. I shall have to keep an eye out for lunar civilizations from now on."

She nodded, "Yes you shall." As she said this, something in the distance caught her attention. They were on a bridge of sorts made from many roots, one which had a perfect view of one enormous tree. 'The Iifa tree…' she thought, her eyes hardening slightly at the sight of it. There was someone there who wanted her powers, she had not forgotten about that. Part of her wanted to go over there and get it over with, but another part told her to wait. She couldn't shake the feeling that she was missing a few pieces to the puzzle, and it wouldn't be smart to barge in not knowing what she was up against…

Kuja stopped as well when he realized how well they could see the tree. Seeing the massive fortress where his former master was waiting for him to bring Cosmos made him feel slightly anxious. Just how much time would Garland be willing to give Kuja before swiping the life of the Genome? And what would happen if he realized that Zidane was around as well? Could he take the life of the younger Genome as well? The thought that had never occurred to Kuja before suddenly made a new chill go down his spine, one strong enough to make him shudder.

Of course, Serenity noticed the movement and looked over at Kuja in concern, "Are you ok?"

"It must have been a chill," he lied, unsure himself of what it was.

Serenity frowned. Yeah right it was a chill, it was hot out! "Bull."

Kuja looked at her in confusion, "What?"

"Bull. I'm calling your bluff," she answered smoothly, sitting down so that her legs dangled over the edge of the bridge formed roots.

"I still don't understand…" Kuja said after a pause. Sure he knew that she meant she wanted the truth, but where on Gaia did she get that term from?

"It comes from a card game. The basic point of the game is for everyone to bluff everyone else. If you think someone is bluffing, you call it by saying 'Bull'. And since I called your bluff, you have to show me your cards to see if I called your bluff or not," she replied, the last part meaning that she wanted him to talk.

Kuja, being the king of metaphors himself, caught onto that instantly and sighed, "It's really nothing."

"Bull."

The silver haired genome looked at her curiously, "Am I really that bad of a liar?"

"Right now? Yes," she replied, glancing up at him.

For a moment, he tried to think of a way to retaliate, but not finding a good one off the top of his head, he just sighed and sat as well, choosing to say nothing.

After a few moments of silence, Serenity decided to take a stab in the dark about what Kuja was wondering about. Actually, since they were currently looking at the Iifa tree, she guessed it wasn't that big of a stab in the dark at all. "Does this have anything to do with Cosmos?" she asked. Judging from the fact that she got his full attention in an instant, she guessed she wasn't that far off the mark, "Come on Kuja; tell me what's wrong."

Kuja opened his mouth to speak but then closed it again. He looked confused at first, then a little frustrated, before finally sighing in exasperation and looking ahead of him, shaking his head as he did, "If I only knew…" He looked out at the tree again, "I thought I might be feeling a new emotion…but now I'm not so sure."

The blond had her full attention turned to him now, "What do you mean?"

"I…Every time Cosmos or the Iifa tree is mentioned, I feel a little anxious. 'What will happen to me if Garland thinks I'm taking too long to find Cosmos?' I would ask myself. But, lately my thoughts have been…aimed slightly different." He looked at her again, "I've been finding myself thinking more about what he might do to you and Zidane if he found out that I was traveling with you two. Would he harm the two of you to get me to work faster? And why would that matter anyway? What is it about the two of you that makes me want so badly to keep you from harm that it practically hurts to think about it?! I remember Zidane used to do many things for his 'team' when fighting against me, but this feels different than what I witnessed from him. But if it's not a team, what is it then?!"

Serenity listened intently to this, absorbing every word he said. She knew there was still something else, but this was most likely the biggest chunk of it all. "Perhaps…you think of us as a family?" she asked.

Kuja looked at her with a both confused and curious expression, "A family? Isn't that all persons considered as descendants of a common progenitor? Zidane might count but-"

Serenity shook her head and interrupted him, "No, that's the textbook definition of a family. I'm talking about the emotional bond that makes a family."

"Emotional…bond?" his eyes clouded over with even more confusion as he tried to understand what she was talking about.

Serenity nodded, "Those who are involved are usually very close to you. Everyone in the family cares for everyone and tries their best to protect each other not because it is required, but because you _want_ to protect them. You worry for each other, laugh with each other, cry with each other, confide in each other, everything. If you worry that much for Zidane's and my own safety, then maybe you are starting to feel like we are a family."

"A family… you make it sound like something very precious," he said, looking out at the tree again.

"It is," came her reply, "I would have been lost long ago if it weren't for my family…" As she said this, a small smile came to her lips as she thought about her former senshi and all the people they had met along the way. Yes, her family is what had made her so strong; their memory alone was enough to make her stand up against Chaos for thousands of years even when all seemed hopeless and pull through the countless lonely nights.

The silver haired man sighed and shook his head before speaking again, jarring the blond from her thoughts, "I don't think I have the power to protect a family from Garland's wrath…"

"That's the beauty of a family, you don't have to be strong on your own." Kuja looked at her in surprise. Serenity smiled and got to her feet, offering her hand to him once she got to her feet, "A family stands together as one. You won't be facing his wrath alone."

Kuja looked searchingly into the blonde's eyes. Was she serious? Was she truly willing to stand up against Garland with him? He thought Zidane might, but this girl? It was ludicrous! Unfathomable! Did she honestly know what she was saying? Standing up against the likes of that wizard because of a feeling?! Not to mention she had never fought Garland before so she may actually have no chance fighting against him! It was reckless and stupid! Hopeless! A disaster waiting to happen! And above all…so touching that Kuja found it hard to breathe for a good minute. "You would honestly help me stand up against Garland?" he asked.

She nodded, "Of course, we're family right?"

Kuja studied her for a few more minutes before smiling himself, and taking her outreached hand, "Right."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it Till next time! 


	20. Chapter 20

ZT: Hey everyone! Again, sorry it took so long for me to update that last chapter.

Kuja: She really hates leaving her readers hanging like that.

ZT: Yep, but now I'm free to do all the typing I please without being called away to teach kindergarteners how to read. So on with the show! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

Firehedgehog – Yeah, gotta love fluff.

Setusuna-3000 – No problem. I would have posted an image of him up here, but fanfiction is not a fan of images…

Taeniaea – Thanks.

Sue01 – Thanks, I'm gonna make you wait awhile longer before they find out she's Cosmos though, just because I'm evil like that.

Taiki – Alright, I'll see what I can do about longer chapters. Here's the update.

J. – Yeah, it was entirely too short…Here's the update.

SerenityMoon – Well thank you, I'm glad you enjoy it. There may not be a million reviews, but this story has about 5600 hits so far, so I don't mind about that.

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 19 **

Kuja grunted slightly as he pulled himself up another vine to the ledge above him. He loved the beauty of nature, but having to battle against it to get to his destination was another story. He grit his teeth and grabbed the vine tighter as he felt himself slipping slightly. 'And there are people who do this sort of thing as a hobby? Who in their right mind would consider this fun??' he wondered bitterly as he pulled himself up more.

His answer came sooner than he expected as a blond head poked out from over the ledge. "Need some help?" Serenity called down to him. Unlike himself, the blond looked like she was enjoying the challenges the land was presenting to them, and had climbed the vine like the very monkey his own race had been compared to on so many occasions.

"I'm fine," he answered, pulling himself up some more.

"You're sure?" she asked, "I can pull the vine up some if it will help."

"No, don't worry about it," he replied, despite the fact that his muscles were screaming something completely different.

She shrugged, "Alright, if you say so…" With that, she disappeared behind the ledge again.

Once she was gone, Kuja set to work scolding himself. 'Come on, Serenity made it up the vines within a few seconds! If she can do this, so can I!' he forced himself to move higher up the vines at a slow yet steady pace. As he reached the top, even though he was focusing on climbing, he couldn't help but hear a scuffle up on the ledge above. Obviously a mist monster was up there and Serenity was battling it. This made Kuja force himself up the rest of the way at a faster pace; he didn't want to be stuck on the vines while his blond friend was busy taking care of some ruthless creature. However, once he got to the top finally, he saw that Serenity had already delivered the final blow, and the Ochu was turning back into mist.

Since the monster in the area had been taken care of, the silver haired genome decided to take this time to catch his breath. He sat on the ground and focused on getting his breathing under control, looking over at the blond who had yet to notice him, or if she had, had yet to face him. The sun was dancing through some leaves on a ledge higher up, making various patterns on and around her and making her hair look like it shimmered as it reflected off of the spun gold. It was such a heavy contrast to the dark attire she wore…it made Kuja wonder for a moment what she would look like if she actually dressed as a noble. 'She would have numerous suitors, that is for sure,' he thought as he took his gaze away from her. 'Yes, she would steal the heart of any planet's prince…' He blinked suddenly when the thought crossed his mind. Since when did he talk of princesses and princes? He was the canary/cage metaphor master… 'It must have been because we were talking about moon princesses earlier,' he concluded, turning his attention to Serenity again.

And again, he blinked. For a fraction of a moment, he could have sworn she looked…different. It was too quick for him to make out exact details, but it looked like her hair was in an abnormal hairstyle, parted into two streamers, and she looked like she was wearing a white gown of sorts. However, as soon as the mirage came it was gone as Serenity turned to face him, looking just as she always had.

She walked over to him and kneeled next to him, "You ok?"

'I must have pushed myself harder than I thought I did…' Kuja decided as he looked up at the female thief. "I'll be fine, just a little out of breath is all," he answered, slowly getting to his feet, "Unfortunately I am not as athletic as my younger brother."

"I think that will change after this trip," Serenity replied with a slight grin on her face.

Dusting himself off, the silver haired genome nodded, "For my own sake I hope so; this is exhausting."

Serenity got to her feet as well, "I'm guessing there wasn't much like this on Terra, hm?"

He shook his head, "Not at all. Terra was very…artificial. If anything needed to be climbed, it looked like some sort of ladder or staircase."

'Yep, that sounds about right…' Serenity thought, remembering how Terra was beginning to look the last time she was there. "Really? That's convenient, but would kind of stink at the same time. Where's the challenge then?" she asked.

"There was no challenge other than the monsters," Kuja replied.

"Yeah, but you couldn't just stand up and start beating the crud out of monsters! It takes practice to gain some strength and skill before facing them," she pointed out.

"Hence the reason why those who lived on Terra focused on mastering magic; it takes more mental training and practicing the spells than actual physical work to master it," Kuja said.

"I guess…still, it seems like a waste," she said, the last part almost to herself.

He looked at her curiously, "What's a waste?"

"Well, Genomes were created, right?" Kuja nodded in response, not sure where this was going. "Well, the one who created all of you-Garland I think you said his name was-has you master magic and not focus on physical training at all, yet from what I've seen from you and Zidane, he had made your bodies ideal for physical challenges just so long as you trained your body some," she replied.

Kuja resisted the urge to blush deeply at the thought that she had spent so much time studying them that she could conclude that. Luckily for him Serenity seemed to be thinking this piece of information over a bit so she hadn't noticed his little problem at all. Once he was sure that any color that may have come to his porcelain skin was gone, Kuja broke Serenity away from her thoughts, "Well, if my not being able to do strenuous physical work bothers you so much, why not teach me?"

Kuja had meant this to be a joke, however as he spoke this he found himself looking into two orbs that were practically sparkling with excitement, "What a great idea!"

"I was joking!" he exclaimed half in distress when he realized she was serious.

Serenity had a smile that showed just as much excitement as her eyes did, "Yeah, but I'm not."

"I can see that…" Kuja replied, looking a little depressed, but at the same time amused, "I don't know the first thing about physical fighting other than it hurts when you get hit by it."

"Well that's why you're going to learn," she replied, "Some creatures aren't that affected by magic and considering I met you in Oeilvert, I don't need to tell you that there are some places that magic doesn't work."

"True, but there are some items that can compensate for that," he pointed out.

Serenity sighed in frustration, "You can't always rely on Dark Matter, Kuja. What if you run out? And besides, you have a staff with you; why not use it?"

"I bought the staff as a last resort for Oeilvert. But it can't do much damage even in a trained hand," Kuja pointed out.

"Says who?" the blond asked confused. Staves can't do much…HA! Tell that to all the Youma she'd K.O-ed with one!

"Says common knowledge. Staves are used by mages to help channel spells. They're not built to bring down an enemy as swords are," he replied.

"You're absolutely right, staves can't take down an enemy in the way a sword can. Swords are sharp and are meant to cut things. Staves can break bones and-if you're trained enough and have the strength to do so- impale enemies," she retaliated.

Kuja thought about a comeback, but then saw caught a glimpse of the look in Serenity's eyes. He sighed, "I'm not going to win this one am I?"

Serenity shook her head, "Not on your life. Now let me see it."

Kuja blinked in surprise when he saw her outstretched hand, waiting for him to hand her his staff. Now, since she had been speaking about it and had already made it clear that she was going to teach him how to use it, it was no surprise that she would ask for it…if it was visibly on his body. But he had it hidden by magic, and had not mentioned that to her, so how did she know it was there?

"Come on, I know you have it with you; you're not stupid enough to wander around without it. And since you're a master at magic, hiding a staff would not be too difficult at all," she pressed when he didn't give her the staff fast enough.

The genome looked at her suspiciously at first; something told him that it wasn't just logic telling her that he had the staff hidden. Could she sense his magic? And if that was the case, was she a mage herself? She would have to be a strong one, stronger than any average spell caster to sense his spells… Finally he summoned up the staff and showed it to her.

Serenity took the staff and looked it over. She frowned slightly, "Is this a good one?"

He looked at her incredulously, all his thoughts about her being a strong mage flying out the window. What sort of mage would ask if _that_ staff was good or not? "It's a High Mage Staff!"

Hearing this, her eyes narrowed, _this_ was a High Mage Staff?? No wonder Kuja said that staves couldn't do much; this thing was crap compared to her own! "Well, I guess this will work for now…but I think you should make your own one of these days when you're comfortable enough fighting with a staff," she said, half to herself, and half to Kuja.

"Make my own staff??" he raised an eyebrow. Why would he make a staff when he could get one at a weapons shop?

She nodded, "Yeah, personalized weapons always work much better than the store bought ones because they're made just for you."

"You sound like you're an expert in these fields…" he said. In answer, she drew one of her daggers and showed it off. Sure she hadn't made it herself, and it wasn't exaclty customized for her, but still Kuja didn't know that so it would help get her point across to him. After showing it off, she sheathed it again.

However, she should have waited a few more seconds before she did that. A roar from above caught both of their attentions and they looked up. A Gnoll jumped down from one of the higher ledges, ready to attack. Whether it was because she was holding a staff for the first time in a long time, or because she was caught off guard by the creature, Serenity went into battle mode. The creature hadn't had its feet on the ground for less than a second before she struck. She flipped around and sped forward at top speed, striking it with a mixture of skill and power which she usually reserved for youma. The poor Gnoll didn't know what hit it before it turned to mist.

As Kuja watched this, he stared wide eyed. Well, he had to give this one to Serenity; she was right about staves causing a lot of damage if you know how to use them… However, his thought about that was stopped short when he found himself looking at someone else. 'What on Gaia…?' The image before him looked similar to the one before, but different. The hairstyle was still the same, but now it had red plates on the buns and little white barrettes in front. However, the outfit was much different. For one, it was much, _much _shorter. The bodice was white with a blue collar, a set of white wings in the front where the collar's ends met. Her sleeves were pink and puffy which reminded him of balls. Connected to the bodice was a multilayered, multi-colored skirt which reached halfway past the upper part of her legs. On her back were a red bow and a pair of white wings. White knee high boots and elbow length gloves, both with red at the end, and a red choker finished off the outfit.

Kuja stared at the person before him, completely frozen. What was going on?? The person turned to him and again was instantly replaced by Serenity. Seeing the look her gave her, she stared back curiously, "What?"

He shook his head, relieving himself of his stupor. "Nothing…so when do you plan to start teaching me how to use that?" he asked, pointing to the staff.

"As soon as we get out of the mountain path," she answered with a grin, beckoning for him to follow as she began moving towards where they presumed the exit was.

Kuja watched her leave for awhile before glancing around. His eyes landed on a bunch of pink flowers which he didn't recognize. "It must be something these things are omitting…" he decided, turning to follow Serenity. After all, why would she be dressed in outfits like that?

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	21. Chapter 21

ZT: Hey everyone! Sorry for not updating forever, I got a massive writers block…again.

Kuja: Drats you still live…

ZT: Of course I do; writers block wont kill me.

Kuja: But a mob of readers waiting for an update should have…

ZT: Sweatdrop Oook….Well I've made you guys wait long enough for this update so here it is! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

Raine of The Darkness Clan - Here it is. Sorry you had to wait so long for the update.

RadiataElf - You'll find out soon. ;p

Fallen Tenshi860 - Soon, really soon actually. Sorry it took so long for the update.

Taiki - Thanks! Sorry it took so long to update TT

Firehedgehog - haha yep he's seeing her true self. Poor flowers get the blame though...

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 20**

Zidane jumped back in order to avoid getting charged by an annoying Blazer Beetle. Why these things continued to attack him despite the fact that he could take them down with one hit was a complete mystery to him. What was more annoying was the fact that he was only a few feet away from the entrance to Madain Sari when the mist monsters seemed to appear out of thin air. "Can't you guys swim across the ocean and harass a Yan or something??" he asked them exasperatedly. They responded by making him stomp out the flame on his boots caused by the fira they cast. Giving them a tired look, he threw a coin in the air. The Blazer Beetle watched the coin fly into the air and fall in the form of a treasure chest. Mesmerized, the creature watched as the box slowly began to open by itself, before blowing up in its face.

Zidane shook his head as the creature turned to mist. They always fell for that; they should have a memo out there warning monsters about that attack with how often he used it…He turned his head when he heard a noise behind him. Choco was busy grooming his feathers a few feet away, the creatures that had been bombarding Zidane had paid no attention to the massive yellow bird. "I don't see how this makes sense to them," Zidane said to Choco who looked up when he heard his master's voice, "They attack me who is clearly armed and dangerous, yet they don't give you a second thought."

Choco "kweh'd" in response before continuing to groom his feathers. The genome sighed in response before turning his attention back to the ruins in front of him. He had never had a problem with Madain Sari before, but at the moment it made him not only ill at ease, but to the point where he was admittedly scared. 'Well of course you're scared, you dope,' he scolded himself, 'You're only about to tell two powerful summoners that their nemesis is still alive and let them know that he's teamed up with you!' Zidane already knew how this conversation was going to go: higher in volume by the second.

As he stood staring at the ruins, he found himself regretting leaving Kuja and Serenity behind. Sure it seemed like a smart idea at the time and he would most likely get a good laugh when they showed up, but the more he thought about it, the more he really didn't want to face the summoners alone. Glancing around, he noted that there were no other monsters in the area for him to buy time by fighting, so instead he decided to get 'accidentally' distracted by the ruins to buy some time. The sun was directly behind them at the time making the ruins look like they were aflame, just as they were when Dagger had her flashback. He frowned slightly; it was sad to think that a whole civilization went down in one night like that. They must not have known what hit them when it happened. 'I know when Alexandria was hit it was pretty bad, but to be there and see everything you had ever known be blown away like that, to watch all those you care for die, or worse, not know what has happened to them, I can't even imagine how that must feel,' he thought.

As the thought passed through his mind, Zidane felt something tingling in the back of his mind. It wasn't very strong, but it was noticeable enough to make him narrow his eyes slightly and dwell on it. 'That's weird,' he thought…but at the same time it also felt familiar. He had this sensation before, he was sure of it, but when?

He didn't have time to think about that for very long. Zidane's eyes widened as the scene of Madain Sari's ruins changed before his eyes. 'Is that….a palace?' he gasped, looking at what resembles a kingdom burning in the night. Along with it came sounds; sounds of the crackling of the flames, structures collapsing to ruble, metal on metal as weapons clashed, and voices. The voices rang louder than all the other noises. There were screams of pain, terror, and grief mixed with war cries and voices crying out for their loved ones. "…the princess?!" Zidane only caught the last part of the sentence yelled right behind him, but it was enough for him to recognize the voice, 'Kuja?!'

He turned around to find himself looking at the plains outside of Madain Sari again. Scanning the area, he found no one else around, and no sign of …whatever that was he just witnessed. Turning back around, he found himself staring at Madain Sari again, not the burning kingdom. "What was that just now….?" he asked himself, a chill running down his spine as the scene replayed in his mind. After taking a few minutes to calm himself down and running a hand through his hair, he decided it must have just have been his mind playing tricks on him, and possibly those stupid pink flowers he kept coming across were messing with his senses. He doubted it, but hey, what else could it be? Not wanting to have another illusionary episode like that, the genome walked into the ruins to try to find Dagger and Eiko. After all, they couldn't be worse than that scene he just witnessed, right?

* * *

"You met who where and WHAT??!!" Apparently Zidane was wrong. He was expecting an outburst, but he had expected it to be coming from the outspoken Eiko, not the calm and collected queen of Alexandria. 

"Come on Dagger, at least hear me out," he tried, having a feeling that his plea was falling a deaf ears.

It was. "How could you do that to us Zidane?? Kuja's the bad guy!" Eiko stomped her foot as she added her two cents in.

"He's changed since you guys last saw him. And he knows a thing or two about Cosmos," Zidane replied. Seeing the blank expressions on their faces, it took the genome a few moments to realize what they were confused about, "Cosmos is the name of the silver being."

"I still don't trust him. Zidane, he betrayed my mother, attacked my kingdom, and tried to kill all of us, including yourself, on multiple occasions. He convinced my mother that he was on her side then, so what makes you think that he wasn't doing the same to you?" Dagger asked, still obviously steaming, but managing to speak calmly after her original outburst.

He looked at her with understanding. Zidane was no stranger to what had happened; he had been a key player in that whole mess after all. "I know it's tough to give him a chance, but it's obvious he's changed. He could have slipped out and let me and Serenity die on multiple occasion. Shoot, he went out of his way to help us; he even rush-mastered the life spell in Ipsen's Castle when Serenity was hit with roulette!" he pointed out.

Eiko jumped at this, "Oh, so he's ok because he saved Serenity? Honestly we hardly see you now thanks to your new girlfriend!" She didn't notice Dagger's gaze shift slightly when she said this so that she was making eye contact with neither of them.

Zidane on the other hand had a sudden twist in his gut and a feeling of horror. "I could never look at Seren like that!" he exclaimed, his voice revealing how horrified and disgusted he was by the thought. Sure she was hot and fun to be around, but…just no! Why he felt like that he wasn't sure, but he was positive that he could never see Serenity as more than just a good friend or sister figure.

The younger summoner gave and exasperated sigh before stomping off. "Fine then!" she yelled, "Say what you want! Let our enemies join us for all I care, but don't expect me to bring you back to life when Kuja kills you! And you better hope Dagger saves you too if you're choosing Serenity over her!"

When Eiko yelled this, Zidane's attention immediately turned to the older summoner. Only then did he notice that her gaze was not on him. "Dagger, you know me and Serenity are only friends right?"

She smiled at him in response, "Of course I do, Zidane…" she looked down at her gloved hands again before speaking, "…And I suppose I can give Kuja a chance."

He gave her a weak smile as she said this, "Thanks Dagger." She nodded before walking away, and giving Zidane all the time in the world to kick himself. 'Why couldn't you say something else to her??' he scolded himself. He knew she was still hurting from Eiko's outburst, but at the same time, it must have looked that way from their point of view. It was true after all, he hadn't been around a lot, and when they saw him, he was with Serenity. Plus it must have hurt her a lot to have him stand up for Kuja, someone who caused her much grief. He looked in the direction Dagger had left in; he needed to do something to make it up to her, to show her that he wasn't trying to hurt her, but what? He could try singing their song, but he had never actually tried singing to someone else before, but word around Tantalus was that his singing in the shower was a little more than pleasant… 'But those guys wouldn't know class from a rubber boot' he thought. No, getting her something would probably be best, but what could he get her? Conde Petie was the only place around here with shops, but they just had food, medical supplies, and weapons as far as he knew. 'I highly doubt a new rod or a loaf of bread will make Dagger feel better… But those pink flowers might!' Zidane realized. Sure he wasn't too fond of them, but that didn't make them any less pretty. Plus he had some experience in making bouquets thanks to the times he was in charge of stage props for Tantalus's shows…Counting his gil, he ran off to bribe a moogle to find him a ribbon and then went searching for some flowers…

* * *

"I think we took longer than Zidane thought we would," Serenity said as they neared Madain Sari. Once they had left the mountain path, she and Kuja had taken a break from walking so that Serenity could teach him some basics on fighting with a staff. Much to her joy and Kuja's surprise, he was actually able to handle his staff quite well, and was able to take down some of the local monsters with very little to no help at all and without using magic. 

"True, but that just means that he has had more time to calm down the queen and that little loud mouthed brat," Kuja said.

"Hmm…another thing we agree on," she said wistfully when the silver haired genome described Eiko in such terms.

"You don't like the little summoner either?" he asked.

Serenity tapped her chin thoughtfully before answering, "I don't know…I think it's more along the lines that she reminds me of one of my family members when she was younger. So it's kinda a thing of I've already went through the handling the outspoken little brat thing once and don't wanna have to go through with it again."

Kuja chuckled at her explanation, "So this family member enjoyed harassing you then I suppose?"

Serenity thought back to her pink haired, time traveling future daughter and frowned, "Yes, I'm convince it was one of her hobbies. That and trying to steal my Mamoru away from." She let a smirk play on her lips at that part, "Didn't win that one though the little pipsqueak!"

Hearing her say "My Mamoru" made the silver haired genome curious, "You have a lover then?"

Serenity looked at him confused, "Hmm? Oh! No, not anymore. He…he passed away awhile ago."

Kuja stopped dead in his tracks, "He's dead?" For a moment, the silver haired genomes heart hammered before he was positive that it must have stopped beating completely. Her lover was dead? How did that happened? He wasn't in one of the kingdoms when Kuja or Brahn attacked them was he? He prayed with all his might that he wasn't.

Her warrior senses picking up on the fact that it was only her own footsteps she was hearing now instead of her own plus that of a feminine male, she turned around to see what stopped him. She blinked in surprise to see him practically petrified. "What's wrong?" she asked, concerned.

It took a few moments for Kuja to find his voice, but when he did it shook slightly, "This Mamoru character…what happened to him?"

His question caught her by surprise. How was she supposed to answer that? She couldn't just say 'Oh he was killed by my arch nemesis Chaos when he was possessing the body of who was at the time the most powerful sailor soldier in the universe, Sailor Galaxia.' Why would was he so terrified about this anyway it's not like she said anything that would hint at her killing him or something…then it donned on her. She shook her head and smiled softly, "It wasn't your doing if that's what you're wondering." She saw him visibly relax at this and shrugged, "If it had been your doing, trust me you would have known by now." She saw Kuja open his mouth to say something, but he stopped when he heard the same familiar, annoying sound that Serenity had loathed hearing ever since she arrived.

"It's you, kupo!"

"Oh, so Zidane sent the moogle welcoming committee. How thoughtful of him," Kuja said sarcastically.

"Zidane didn't send us, kupo!" said one.

"Kup-kupo! We're always guarding the entrance, kupo!" chirped another.

"Good for you! Great way to keep visitors out of here I bet!" Serenity said in a false cheery tone that made Kuja laugh.

That is until another moogle spoke up, "Hey, kupo! Aren't you that one silver haired lady?" He stopped laughing immediately and stared at the moogles. It was a good thing too, otherwise he would have noticed Serenity looking more petrified that he did a moment ago. "I-I'm not a-"

Serenity cut him off and quickly grabbed his hand, dragging him inside the ruins, "C'mon my lovely wife, we need to find your brother remember?"

As she dragged him away, the moogles stared after them and waited until the two were out of sight before speaking.

"…The silver haired one was the lady, kupo??"

"I thought the blond was that one woman, Kupo!"

"Kupo, Well Zidane's blond, Kupo. Maybe humans hair color determines their gender, Kupo…"

"That's just creepy, ku-kupo!"

* * *

Once inside the ruins of Madain Sari, the two sighed and glanced around. Seeing no sign of Zidane, they decided to take a quick break. "Crazy moogles!" Serenity huffed, sitting on a bench, "Their crazy 'Kupo's are gonna drive me 'Kupo' crazy!" 

"I agree," Kuja said, glancing at her then the broken fountain, then snapping his head back to her. He could have sworn he saw the woman in the gown again, sitting where Serenity was!

Serenity looked at him curiously when she saw him staring at her, "What?"

He blinked a few moments before glancing around and spotting what he was looking for. "Blasted flowers…" he muttered.

"Flowers? Man why are you mad at… HOLY-! The flowers!" she jumped to her feet, seeing the pink flora he was speaking of. She knew those! She'd recognize them anywhere! A scream from within the ruins confirmed her suspicions as she took off towards where it came from, "BLASTED FLOWERS!"

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	22. Chapter 22

ZT: Hey everyone!

Kuja: Praise be to the gods! You updated at a decent pace!

ZT: Oh can it skirt boy.

Kuja: Hmph!

ZT: Well, anyway here's the update. I don't own FF9 or Sailor Moon. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

Tsuki no Echo – Hmm…You'll just have to read to find out ;) I'm glad you like the fic. Here's the update.

Taeniaea – Thanks

Firehedgehog – haha I had fun with chapter 20.

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers **

**Chapter 21**

Kuja wasn't sure what surprised him more: the way Serenity reacted when she spotted the flowers, or the fact that she was blaming the flowers for the scream they heard just moments ago. At the moment he was running to keep up with her as she sped off in the direction of the distressed voice, mumbling something that sounded like "Koo-so" or something along those lines. "Serenity, what's happening?" he asked when she stopped for a second to decide how to get around a wall that was in her way.

"I'll explain later," she answered quickly before taking off again, making Kuja inwardly groan before he began to chase after her again, he was most definitely a bigger fan of walking.

Serenity hardly paid any mind to the person behind her as she mentally cursed in a variety of languages that she had picked up over the years, and cursed verbally in Japanese, something she hadn't done in awhile. What were those pests doing here? Didn't she get rid of them in her Sailor MOON days?? 'Just my luck if there's more than one of those botanical bastards…' she thought with a huff, opening up her senses to pinpoint the offender. She frowned; while on Gaia she didn't try to find youma, but now that she was, she couldn't help but notice the similar energy signatures between the ones she was tracking and the mist monsters. She didn't feel like dwelling on it at the moment, but decided to tuck it in the back of her mind to think about later. 'Please let this be just some new mist monster…' she pleaded to whatever higher being she knew wouldn't listen. 'Or if not, at least let it be the minion!'

For once, luck was on her side to some extent. Serenity and Kuja stopped short when they saw the two summoners and Zidane desperately trying to fight off a monster. Kuja looked at it, battle prepared, but still a bit curious and in awe. He had never seen a monster quite like this one. It had six legs which reminded him of a spider's or a crab's legs, but looked as if they were perhaps plant life. Connected to these legs was the upper body of a woman with bluish grey skin, long blue hair, and dangerous magenta eyes. She had two red plates covering her breasts and some huge shoulder guards which must have come a foot off her shoulder. "Zidane, is your party alright?" he asked, casting Flare on the creature as it tried to attack Zidane. He scowled when the creature dodged it, but at least it was enough to make the creature miss striking the blond genome.

Zidane nodded, slowly getting to his feet after making a desperate leap to avoid the fast moving creature, "Yeah, we'll live."

Dagger who was busy playing medic for the team gasped when she saw the silver haired genome. A part of her had hoped that Zidane was playing some sick, twisted joke when he said that Kuja was back, but seeing him now made that small bit of hope fly out the window. "Kuja…" she breathed.

He glanced at her, "Your Majesty." He cast Flare again at the creature as its arms turned into vines and started coming at him. He let a satisfied smirk cross his lips as the vines incinerated before they could touch him.

"Don't get cocky," Zidane warned when he saw Kuja's smirk, "This thing's been dodging our attacks non-stop!" He rushed forward and struck the creature with his orichalcons before moving away just as quick to avoid getting struck by it.

Serenity growled and unsheathed Destiny's Wrath, swiftly moving in to strike the creature, "I'll make potpourri out of you!" As she moved in, her bangs shifted slightly on her forehead, effectively hiding the faint eight pointed star insignia which glowed on her forehead as she pumped Mars's Fire Soul attack into the blade. Not expecting the blow of a Sailor attack to come with the strike of a short sword, the creature toppled backward and somersaulted a bit before stopping a moment, stunned.

Eiko took this chance to summon the Phoenix, hoping that the fiery Eidolon might be able to put the creature in its place. The Rebirth Flame made the creature yelp, however after a moment the flames disappeared as she canceled the attack. Before the massive fire bird could be dismissed, the creature threw a fresh set of vines at the new arrival, effectively trapping it with one arm. Eiko gasped and tried to dismiss the Phoenix. However, the creature had already caught onto the fact that these people not only controlled powerful summons, but could also hold their own. With the other arm, it lashed out with more vines, capturing Eiko, Dagger, and Kuja, while Serenity and Zidane were able to dodge. As it did, a massive pink flower suddenly sprouted from the creature's back and began to shimmer.

Serenity recognized it and cursed, "Not good!"

Zidane cursed as well, "We have to get those vines off! If it's anything like the plant monsters of the evil forest they-"

"Sap your strength, I know!" Serenity interrupted, sheathing Destiny's Wrath, "But you should already know that since that thing's able to catch an Eidolon that it's not like the creatures you have fought before."

He turned his attention to her, "You make it sound like you've faced this kind of mist monster before."

Serenity narrowed her eyes, "That's no mist monster." She saw the Genome give her his full attention. She clasped both of her hands in front of her as if she were praying; she didn't want to do this, but last time she came across these creatures they nearly killed her and the inners; she had no choice. "That's a minion of the Kisenian Blossom," she closed her eyes and concentrated.

Zidane looked at the blond in confusion. What was she doing? Praying? No, she wouldn't be praying at a time like this… And what was a "Kisenian Blossom"? Or a better question how did Serenity know about it? His question was not answered but he had about a million more as he saw the atmosphere begin to change. The scenery began to fade, leaving only colors and a stronger presence of magic than he had ever felt before…and it all seemed to be coming from whatever Serenity was doing.

However Zidane wasn't the only one who had noticed that something was going on. 'W-who can control this much power?! And with such a small amount of effort?!' Kuja was practically shaking in shock as he took note of the change, although it could have possibly been his body trying to give out; it felt like this creature was sapping away his strength at a fast pace. 'Damn,' he clenched his teeth, gripping at the vines wrapped around his neck. Not only was the creature draining his strength, but the vines were cutting off his air supply. And he dare not burn them lest he wished for the flames to burn the two summoners as well… 'Serenity whatever you are doing, do it quick!' he mentally pleaded.

Serenity obeyed. She opened her eyes to reveal that they were glowing white which made the others think that her eyes had been replaced with orbs of light. Opening one hand up, a glowing golden discuss appeared whirling above it. Tossing it like a Frisbee, it sliced through the vines which held the captives before re-clasping her hands.

Zidane was taken aback by amount of power Serenity was giving off, but seeing his friends freed was enough of a wakeup call for him to rush over to them to make sure they weren't seriously harmed. He was relieved to see that although they looked a bit tired and out of breath, they were alright.

"Dismiss the Eidolon quickly!" Serenity commanded. Eiko, like the others not having a clue what was going on and still dazed from being drained and having her air supply cut off, numbly obeyed. Seeing this done, Serenity turned her attention to the creature. She wasn't sure whether it was curiosity or stupidity which kept it in place, but whatever it was worked like a dream and the creature just watched her to see what would happen next. The area stopped glowing and Serenity's eyes turned back to normal. Looking at the creature, she smirked, "You youma never do get any smarter, do you?" She opened her clasped hands to reveal a golden heart shaped broach with an upturned crescent moon at the bottom.

Before anyone could say a word, Serenity yelled out a phrase she hadn't used in a long time, "Moon Eternal! MAKE UP!" The four were almost tempted to close their eyes as lights, ribbons, and feathers swirled around Serenity, changing her attire and, to quite some extent, the length of her hair, and making them nearly blind and on the verge of seasickness. When it faded, the four found themselves staring not at Serenity, the lady bandit of Tantalus, but the original champion of love and justice, Sailor Moon.

She glanced at them and smiled sadly, "I know you guys have a lot of questions, and I understand how confused you must feel, and I'll try to explain this as best I can. But first I have some business to attend to." She turned her attention to the blossom and narrowed her eyes, calling out her staff in the process, "You have a lot of nerve messing with my friends, stink weed! For I am…" She inwardly smirked as the creature just waited for her to keep talking. She hadn't used the intro speech in awhile, but at the moment as Zidane was helping the others get out of the line of fire, it would work as a great distraction. She crossed her arms and recited the speech she used to give to all her enemies, "Agent of Love and Justice… Pretty Soldier in the Sailor Suit…Sailor Moon! In the name of the Moon, I will punish you!"

The blossom smirked at the taunt and prepared her vines to strike again. She flicked them like a whip at Sailor Moon, who dodged out of the way. "Mercury Crystal!" she called out to the power which once belonged to her blue haired bodyguard, teammate, and friend. The blossom lashed her vines out at the scout again. That was just what she was waiting for. Tucking her staff under her arm, she placed her hands over her chest "Shine Aqua ILLUSION!" She let out a wave of water which froze the vines as they were covered in it. However, the creature noticed this and was able to move some so that its whole body wasn't covered in ice. 'Crud!' she thought, knowing that the creature would break free before she was able to moon dust it. She prepared to cast another spell, but the creature broke free and she had to dodge its attacks again while trying to get her own in. 'Seiya don't fail me now!' she thought, mentally summoning the power of Sailor Star Fighter. However, something unexpected happened, and Sailor Moon found herself dodging the vines again. 'What?? Why can't I call upon Seiya's attacks??' she wondered. She never had this trouble before…She tried another scout attack, with similar results. She gritted her teeth and focused on something closer to home, "Venus Crystal! Crescent Beam!" That one worked like a charm and the creature stumbled back as it was hit by a golden beam of light. 'What's going on? Can I only summon my team's attacks as Sailor Moon?' She wasn't sure if that was the case or not. After all she hadn't been Sailor Moon since she was able to become Sailor Cosmos.

As this progressed, Zidane turned to the others as they slowly pulled themselves together. "Did you guys see that?" he asked.

"There were a bunch of flashing lights, feathers, and I could have sworn I heard music. It was hard to miss," Kuja replied, giving his brother a bored look.

"Not that!" Zidane growled, "The ice! That thing can be slowed down by freezing it."

"But Zidane, ice spells are dark magic. Eiko and I can only do white," Dagger pointed out.

"And I focus more on fire," Kuja added.

Zidane thought about this, and then it came to him, "Vivi could use items to focus his power; that's how he learned the more advanced spells."

"That's how many mages master spells. What's your point?" his silver haired brother asked.

"So if you had something like, you could learn a skill from it?" the blond genome asked, grinning now.

"Of course but how- Oh!" Kuja looked over at Dagger, "Your Highness, do you still have your summoning stones?"

Dagger looked at him in surprise, "Of course I do. Why?"

"Do you have an Opal?" he asked, continuously glancing back at the battle between the Sailor scout and the Blossom.

Realizing what he was thinking, she nodded and tossed it to him. Focusing on the little gem in his hand, Kuja found what he was looking for and smirked. The creature was paying him no mind which made his job all the more easy. Focusing his power into the gem, he released it with one word, "BLIZZARA!"

The creature whipped around just in time to see a sheet of ice cover it.

"Serenity now!" Kuja yelled.

Glad that the others had caught on to what needed to be done, she nodded and gave them a grateful grin, "Right!" Twirling her staff, she focused on the powers of the moon. "Silver Moon! Crystal Power! Kiss!" A flash of light later, the creature was destroyed. 'That didn't feel right…' she thought, looking strangely at her wand. The power of the moon was always light and pure, but she could have sworn she felt a little bit of…evil, coming from the power she channeled just now. She looked up and frowned slightly, 'I haven't felt that kind of power since…'

"Um…Serenity?" The voice of the young queen brought Serenity back to reality as she looked at the four. Seeing the looks on their faces, she couldn't help but sigh, 'Oh this is gonna be fun…'

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	23. Chapter 23

Kuja: (Walks in and sees a boot coming out from underneath the table.) That's new… (Lifts the tablecloth) Zipora get out from under there.

ZT: Nu-uh!

Kuja: Yeah-huh! You have to update the story.

ZT: I don't wanna!

Kuja: Oh really? And why not?

ZT: (Pouts) Because Cosmos is gonna kill me.

Kuja: Cosmos? You mean meatball headed Usagi?

ZT: No…I mean kick ass ooc Cosmos from the story!

Kuja: Why is she going to kill you?

Cosmos: (Appears behind Kuja) Because she botched up the storyline.

Kuja: (Jumps) Don't do that!

Cosmos: (Ignores him) She was supposed to do some other things but messed up. Now she's gonna have to get pretty creative to save the story.

Kuja: I see…

Cosmos: Now…(Looks at ZT) Get out from underneath the table, go get your magic pen, and get this story rolling!

ZT: …..I don't use the magic pen anymore, I use MS word.

Cosmos: You know what I mean! Update the story!

ZT: Alright alright...sheesh, someone's in a bad mood… I don't own FF9 or SM. Enjoy!

**Review Responses:**

Sue01- Thanks. Here's the next chapter!

Firehedgehog - Yep. But this chapter's not all of it ;)

Taeniaea - Thanks

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 22**

Kuja looked at the woman standing in front of him in complete and total shock. This form…it was one of the beings he kept seeing glimpses of. 'What is this? Some form of Trance? No, it would have faded by now…Perhaps…no she couldn't be; Cosmos is silver haired, not blond.' Many theories as to what happened, and who the woman in front of him really was raced through his mind, but seeing that he could find no answers, he just waited for her to start speaking.

'Why on Earth, the Moon, Gaia, and any other planet in the universe did I let myself get cornered like this?' Serenity wondered as she looked at the other four. Each one looked clearly shocked and was staring at her with searching eyes. Well, actually they might have been taking in her attire as well. The thought made her unconsciously shift a little; she had always been aware of the fact that the skirts were very short, but she guessed she was always too busy fighting youma when she was younger to care, and as Cosmos she was alone most the time so she never really thought about the length of her skirt. But now that she was with a group of others who were fully clothed (well, Kuja still hadn't ditched the skirt for Wranglers yet, but it didn't make things any more comfortable), she felt a little uncomfortable. Not to mention the suffocating silence added to her feeling entirely awkward in this situation. She tried to break it by thinking about ways to start a conversation, but unfortunately nothing seemed to come to mind at the moment. She sighed and put a hand on her hip, lowering her head slightly and running the other hand through her bangs, 'Alrighty…if I can't make conversation as a person, let's play Sailor Scout.' Lifting her head, she quickly brushed her hand the rest of the way through her bangs before letting it rest at her side. She gave them a cool and composed look as she addressed them as she had many others who had been attacked by youma, "Are you guys alright? The creature's effects should have worn off by now…"

"N-No we're fine," Dagger stuttered slightly as she found her voice, "….Serenity? Is that really you?"

The scout gave a nod, her expression getting soft as she did, "Well, technically like this I'm known as Sailor Moon, but yeah, it's me."

Eiko was next to find her voice, and pull herself together. She stomped her foot and glared at Serenity, "What gives?? How'd you do all that magic all of a sudden?? And what's with the outfit?? Since when do you have wings? Why did you call yourself a soldier of justice?? I thought you were just a common thief!"

'Do I stay cool or do I get in her face?' The blond wondered for a moment before deciding to stay calm, "I am…on Gaia at least."

The little summoner put her hands on her hips, "Oh? And what's that supposed to mean?"

"You want the long story or the short one?" she replied smoothly.

Dagger decided to cut in at this point, having regained her composure when Eiko took over for that short moment, "How about we start with the short one, then switch to the longer one if we need more details?"

Serenity shrugged, "Works for me. Where do you want to start?"

The queen studied her a moment. She had noted before when she first met Serenity that the woman may be from high class, or perhaps even royalty, but she wasn't sure if the woman wanted to talk about that just yet. After all, for all she knew, Serenity could have been in hiding much like she was just a short time ago… "How about we start with this form? You said you are known as 'Sailor Moon' correct?" The scout nodded in confirmation so the queen continued, "What does that mean exactly? Who or what is Sailor Moon?"

Serenity thought about how to answer this before speaking, "…I think I may have to level with you before I can answer that. As a whole, the…I don't know what to call it, but there are others like me and as a whole we are known as Sailor Soldiers or Sailor Scouts. We are soldiers chosen by Destiny to protect our home worlds, our galaxies, and the universe as a whole, from dangers known as "Youma" and any other threat that may arise. Those of us chosen to become Sailors are blessed by a certain planetary object, usually our home worlds, before we are even born. The home of our souls, which are usually called 'Star Seeds', become 'Sailor Crystals' at this point and grant us powers as well as allow us to take similar forms to this," she made a gesture at her attire, "Although my outfit has changed quite drastically over time so I don't know if that's actually an accurate statement now…"

"Hang on a second," Eiko interrupted, "These 'Sailor Crystal' things; are your code names named after the power blessed to your crystals."

Serenity raised an eyebrow, "You catch on quick."

"Yeah but then why were you calling out the names of other crystals while fighting? According to what you said, your object is the moon right? So why did you call for the crystal of 'Mercury' and 'Venus'? Those are deities!" Eiko pointed out.

Serenity sighed and closed her eyes. She had a feeling this would come up, but how to answer it…? She thought on this for a moment before speaking, "…There is a solar system in a galaxy far from here where the planets are favored by specific deities. Those planets are named for the deities who favor them. Mercury and Venus are two of them."

Dagger processed this, "I see…however this does not explain why you used the abilities of these soldiers, unless of course you are a Sailor Scout of these planets as well…"

The blond shook her head, "No, I am not the Scout of those planets. The Scouts of those planets were Sailor Mercury and Sailor Venus… two of my former teammates…" She looked at the others, but the look in the summoners' eyes said that she didn't need to continue, they understood what she meant by "former". "So long story short they gave me their Sailor Crystals in their last fight," she explained.

"Wait so you can just give away the powers given to you by Destiny and planets?" the smaller summoner asked, a little doubtful that such a power could just be handed off to other people. In her eyes that would be like a summoner being able to let someone borrow their summoning abilities.

"Mmm, not usually," she replied, "But I have the ability to channel other Sailor Scouts' powers, so I guess I'm an exception…" She was being vague and Serenity knew they knew it to at least some degree, but she didn't want to explain all _that_ until she knew they were ready to face it. After all, she was dropping a bunch on their plate as it was; up until about ten minutes ago they thought she was just the newest member of Tantalus, not some person from out of this world who had superpowers and all that jazz.

Eiko looked at the scout again before something occurred to her. "Wait! So you're technically a superhero right?"

Serenity raised an eyebrow, "Well, I guess you could say that…"

The purple haired girl jumped up and down at this, "Then where were you when we were fighting this clown??!" She pointed at Kuja when she said this.

The silver haired genome, who like the blond genome had remained silent for the entire time so far, raised an eyebrow at what the young summoner at this point, "Luckily for me obviously not around here…"

"I wasn't on Gaia. The day I met Zidane was my first day on Gaia," Serenity explained. She looked at the blond when she spoke, hoping to be able to read what was going through her partners head. Unfortunately, his eyes were trained on the ground, so she couldn't see his face clearly, 'Crap he must be pissed…' she thought.

Kuja cleared his throat to get Serenity's attention, "I can understand not saying much about this to just anyone on the streets, but why did you not confide in Zidane and myself about this secret? We are not of this world ourselves so that would not have bothered us much, or at least it would not have bothered me…"

"There were a couple of reasons," she began, "the major one being that usually Sailor Scouts keep their identities secret for safety reasons. I didn't bring it up to you because I felt that if I confided in you the moment you told me you weren't of this world, it may have been no big deal for you, but Zidane thought I was a Gaian this whole time. That would be quite a bombshell if I dropped it. Plus, I was still a bit uneasy with all this stuff about Cosmos going on…"

Serenity realized on second too late that she had said too much. "Wait! YOU KNOW COSMOS??!" Eiko exclaimed.

'Crap!' she mentally kicked herself, quickly thinking of what to say next. "Well yeah, she's a Sailor Scout too," she answered.

"And we've been searching for her this whole time while you know who she is and if she's dangerous or not??!" Eiko exclaimed.

"What was I supposed to say? 'Oh hey you don't need to search for Sailor Cosmos I know she's a good guy. How do I know this? Because I'm a Sailor Scout myself and if she were a bad guy it would mean I'm a bad guy as well'? Yeah that would have blown over great, especially with the welcome she received!" Serenity exclaimed in her defense, "Aside from that, I was tracking someone when I came here, the 'Friend' I've been looking for! If that person was here and realized there was a Sailor Scout around, let's just say there would have been a lot more youma then just that Kisenian blossom hanging around!"

Her reasoning made sense to them and they remained silent for awhile. "...It was Necron wasn't it?" The blond scout looked at the other blond as he finally spoke. "The person you were looking for, it was Necron. That's why you were staring at that picture of him in that book in Daguerro for so long."

Serenity nodded slowly, "He is the reason Cosmos is here as well…" The group looked at her questioningly, and she decided that it was time to answer that part at least. "If those records were correct, then this chapter started about five thousand years ago. Cosmos is the most powerful of all the Sailor Scouts, and because of that she has a special mission. There is a great evil by the name of Chaos; Cosmos is destined to fight with him until one or the other falls. While fighting, Necron appeared, attracted by the power radiating from the battle between the two. He concluded falsely from the two that bringing the worlds to nothingness was the only way to bring true peace and contentment to the universe. Needless to say we Sailors don't exactly like that conclusion and Cosmos fought him along side Chaos. However, before the battle could go very far, Necron destroyed Chaos with one spell…"

'Grand Cross…' the name of the attack flowed through the memories of the Gaian heroes as they remembered the terrible attack that caused them so much grief while fighting the enormous blue creature.

"Cosmos managed to defeat him, but it knocked her unconscious for awhile. When she came to, she started searching for the creature on the closest planet, which happened to be Gaia," she concluded.

After she finished, there fell an awkward silence. Serenity looked at the others while they stared at her, then at the ground, then to each other, but not saying a word. After a few minutes of this silence, Serenity sighed, "Well, I'll let you guys talk this over. Whether you trust me and ask me to stay or don't trust me and tell me to leave or die is up to you, I'll respect your wishes. She turned and pointed to a large ruined building that overlooked Madain Sari, "I'll be up there if you need me." With a flap of her wings, she took off into the air and over towards the roof of the building she was talking about. After all, they needed time to talk this over, and she needed time to think about some important issues at hand, namely one: she faced a minion, so who did the main Kisenian blossom possess and where was it?

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	24. Chapter 24

ZT: Hey everyone! Hope everyone's enjoying the story so far. I know a lot of you were surprised that I decided to bring in the Kisenian Blossom.

Kuja: _**I**_ was surprised you brought in the blossoms! What prompted that?

ZT: Shrugs Just did.

Kuja: Sweat drop You just…did?

ZT: Well there's more to it than that, but I don't wanna give anything away.

Kuja: Ha! More like you haven't thought about it yet.

ZT: Have to!

Kuja: I'm sure…

ZT: Whatever…I don't own SM or FF9. Enjoy!

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**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 23**

Three heroes and a former villain of Gaia all sat around the dinner table in Eiko's home, not speaking a single word. For sure there were many things going through all of their minds, but none knew exactly where to start. And it wasn't just about Serenity either…

Kuja glanced at the two summoners in from of him. The queen had her eyes trained on her hands that were folded in front of her, while the younger summoner was staring at him suspiciously but for once not speaking her mind. Kuja himself was at a loss for words as well. He was staring at two of the people whom he had wronged the most. Not only had he robbed them of their homes and families (with Dagger on more than one occasion), but he attacked them, tried to steal the Eidolons from them (he succeeded with Dagger), forced them to go through a hell that no one should ever have to go through in a lifetime, and then because of him, for a time they lost Zidane.

When the name of the blond genome crossed his mind, he glanced over at him. Zidane had stayed very quiet ever since they had confronted Serenity; in fact he had said very little when they were talking to her when Kuja thought the blond would be asking the most questions when they were questioning her. He wasn't sure what to make of it. Was he in shock? Did he feel betrayed? Was he just sorting things out in his mind? Was he so hurt that he was forced into silence much the same way the queen was when Alexandria was destroyed?

"Ugh! Would someone talk already??" 'Obviously not…' Kuja thought as Zidane blurted out that statement in frustration.

"That's easy for you to say! You've had enough time to get comfortable talking around _him_!" Eiko exclaimed, standing up on her chair and pointing accusingly at the silver haired man who sat across from her.

The blond sighed, "Oh come on Eiko, just give him a chance. He's not as-"

"Zidane," Kuja held up his hand to stop the younger genome from speaking. "It is fine, you needn't press them."

Zidane looked at the man next to him, his eyes showing a bit of compassion mixed with pity for him, "But Kuja…"

Kuja shook his head to stop him from speaking again, "I have done many terrible deeds in my past, many to the two ladies sitting opposite of us." He glanced at him with a knowing look in his eyes. "You know this well otherwise you would not have asked to go ahead of Serenity and I to talk to these two about me. Oh and by the way, yes we had a lovely ceremony and honeymoon although Serenity was crushed that you were not her best man," he added the last bit drenched with sarcasm, getting a grin from the blond and a few confused stares from the two women.

Then it hit one of them what he meant. "You made the two of them go through Conde Petie??" Dagger gasped, standing up and giving Zidane a look that clearly accused him of some terrible crime. He rubbed the back of his head and she put her hands on her hips, "I cannot believe you did that! You know the only way to go through there is to go through the ceremony!"

"Yes Serenity and I discovered that when we were stopped by the dwarves blocking the entrance to the mountain path," Kuja sighed.

"So you two actually went through with the ceremony willingly?" she asked in disbelief.

The silver haired genome shrugged, "Why not? It was a new experience and it was interesting to be part of the culture. The only problem I had with it was that the dwarves could not comprehend that I was a man so Serenity wound up being the groom."

"Wait, WHAT?!" Zidane exclaimed, this being news to him.

"Yes it was a good thing that she took it in stride or we may still have been trying to get around the mountain," Kuja replied, tossing his bangs slightly in the process.

"Wait, let me get this straight. Conde Petie not only made you get married, but also made you be the bride in it, and it's still standing??" Eiko asked wide eyed. Kuja nodded. Eiko sat down, "Ok, he's really a good guy." Dagger nodded in agreement; there was no way that Kuja could have some darkness left in him and stand that kind of humiliation.

'I guess that ordeal had some benefit after all…' Kuja thought as he noted that the two were accepting him. "Well, now that we have that out of the way, what about Serenity?"

With the mention of her name, the amusement and mirth in the room that had so recently entered the atmosphere vanished. "I don't know…the she kept the truth from us for awhile," Dagger answered after a pause.

"True, but she never lied to us either. She didn't say much about her past in general, but then again, we never asked her," Kuja added, "And, thinking about it from the point of view of a person who isn't from Gaia, I can not say I blame her. Think about it, she's a Sailor Scout like Cosmos, and everyone has been suspecting Cosmos of something, tracking her down for a reason which Serenity must not be able to understand. Can you imagine what she must have felt, knowing that the rulers of countries were suspecting a fellow Sailor Scout? I wouldn't say anything either."

"True…but still, it is such a large secret to keep from us," the young queen replied.

"That may be so, but tell me this: when you left the palace for the first time with Tantalus, how many people did you tell you were the princess of Alexandria?" the silver haired genome asked.

"None; it would have been foolish to do so. After all, people were after me and it would be unwise to tell just anyone I was royalty when I didn't know who was benevolent and who wasn't," she answered.

"Exactly. Could she not have had similar reasoning?" he pointed out.

"…You have a point I guess," Eiko said after a pause, "And she hasn't done anything to harm us, and she did save us from that evil flower, so I guess she might be on our side, but I still don't like it!"

Dagger nodded, "It would be hypocritical to not trust her when I kept secrets myself…"

"So you three decided it's ok to trust her?" Zidane clarified. Seeing them nod he got to his feet.

"How about you, Zidane?" Eiko asked, "What have you decided?"

"I trusted her all along," he answered, heading towards the exit, "I'll go get her; I need to talk to her about a few things"

* * *

Serenity sat on a roof where someone could easily have looked out over the land. Without any effort at all someone could have seen where the land met the ocean on all sides that it did. Of if one did not care for the land or sea, they could have turned their heads to the heavens and seen countless shining stars standing around two glowing moons, their majestic image not hidden by the glows of city lights. However Serenity had other things on her mind at the moment. She was still in her Sailor Moon form at the moment, pondering many things. She had been trying to use the powers of sailor Scouts other than those of her own team, but again, nothing came. 'What is this?' she asked herself, looking down at her gloved hand, 'Usually I can call on scout powers with ease, yet now it feels as if those powers never even existed within me!' A frown crossed her lips; she had initially thought that it may have been because she was Sailor Moon at the moment she just didn't have the ability to call upon such a power, but the more she thought about it, the more she thought it unlikely. After all, being in a different Sailor suit didn't change who she was. 'Although it may prevent me from using all my power…' she thought, remembering all the times she had to push her limits with the Sailor Scouts; usually with final battles she had to dismiss her Sailor Moon form and take her Lunarian royal form. 'Well I guess I could test it out…' she thought, dismissing her Sailor Moon form.

She was about to transform when two things caught her attention and made her stop. The first was that reality hit her, what would the others say if they spotter transforming into Cosmos? They were already talking over whether or not to trust her when they only knew her as Sailor Moon, finding out she's Cosmos may get them to chase her out of town with torches and pitchforks, something that she knew from experience was not fun at all (but that's a story for another time). The other thing that made her stop was that as soon as she de-transformed, she could feel all her abilities return to her. 'Something must be blocking the power of Sailor Moon…!' she realized her eyes narrowing. Something blocking a scout power was never a good thing, and needed to be out of the way. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on her Moon powers, if there was something blocking it, it would veil the scout power when she tried to search it out as Cosmos. What she saw made her frown and open her eyes, confused, 'A red…light?'

"Nice view huh?" the familiar voice made the blond jump, but relax just as quick when she realized she knew who it belonged to.

"So you guys made your decision?" she asked the blond genome behind her.

Zidane sat next to her, dangling his feet over the side of the building, "I had my mind made up all along. Just because you changed your appearance some doesn't mean you changed who you are. Shoot every sanitary person changes their clothes on a daily basis!"

She found herself smirking at his comment, "So my transformation didn't surprise you in the least?"

"Well, it surprised me when it happened, but I wasn't in complete shock about it. By the way, how can you pick on Kuja when you wear a costume like that?" he asked.

"Mine's not a fashion choice," she answered, her smirk softening to a bit of a smile as she turned her attention to the land again, "So how long have you known?"

"About you being Sailor Moon? For about…I'd say two hours. Cosmos is a different story." Serenity looked and him in surprise, but he gave her comforting smile, "They don't know."

"What gave me away?" she asked.

"You knew about the 'silver being' before anyone mentioned her," he explained, "Plus…I don't know, I guess a part of me just knew. It's hard to explain, but I guess I felt it. You seemed…celestial I guess. I would see stars sometimes when I saw you, mostly in the morning like when we would be getting the ship ready…" He shook his head and laughed a little, "Sounds weird doesn't it?"

Serenity shook her head, "Not at all. Often some of the Sailor scouts would represent their planets and elements to some extent. As Cosmos, I am the Scout of the Stars."

"That makes sense I guess…but what of Sailor Moon? I never see the moon in you, just the stars," the genome replied.

Serenity nodded, "That may have something to do with a little problem I seem to be having." She looked up at the two moons, feeling the gaze of the bandit sitting next to her on her. "See...it's not just my team's scout powers I can use. In fact, I can use many scout powers…thanks to Galaxia."

"Galaxia?" he questioned.

"She used to be the most powerful sailor scout, the scout of my home galaxy. However, she was possessed by Chaos and destroyed scout after scout, taking their Sailor Crystals to make herself more powerful."

"Yeah but why? Why would a scout of the moon get all the power of the Galaxy?" Zidane asked. However as soon as he asked he realized the answer, "You little sneak! You did tell us the truth, but made us think you were being sarcastic! You're a princess of the moon, aren't you?"

Serenity smirked and nodded, "Yeah. But I'm not just a moon princess, I'm _the_ Moon Princess; I'm the princess of the Silver Alliance, basically my whole solar system. Because of that, it made the scouts of my solar system my protectors. When they passed on, I received their powers as a way to defend myself. I guess since Galaxia was meant to protect the galaxy, and I was there at the time when she died, her powers went into me to protect me as well, along with the other scout powers she had acquired over the years. However…" she rubbed her chin thoughtfully as she looked out at the land, "for some reason when I was Sailor Moon just now, something blocked me from using the powers of anyone out of my solar system…"

Zidane frowned at this piece of information, "Have any idea what it is?"

She shook her head, "Right now when I tried to track it, I saw a red light, almost like a red aura but not quite the same…I wonder if it has anything to do with the red moon…" she pondered aloud the last part, glancing up at the twin moons. It was odd, she felt very comforted by the blue moon; it had a similar feeling to the Moon Kingdom's moon. But that red moon, she found herself despising it.

"That would definitely be a twist from me," Zidane said, "It was the blue light that always messed with me. When on Terra it made me on edge constantly. I guess it was the same for the other genomes because they said they hated the light as well…"

"I thought you said that the blue light is what you were always searching for…" Serenity looked at him curiously.

He nodded, "I was. It was weird, when I was there it made me on edge, but I still yearned for it. It was almost like I was attracted to it. I loved it yet hated it at the same time if that makes any sense."

"More so than you'd think," she replied. "As Cosmos, it is my duty to and destiny to fight Chaos, however when he is the only one that has been around as long as you have, and for the longest time you thought was going to be the only person in the universe you'd see more than just once in your life, you begin to feel attracted to that other presence, even though you know that when he does come, you will have to put your heart and soul into trying to kill him…fatal attraction is what it is; human nature getting the better of us."

"…So that book in Daguerro, it was about you wasn't it?" Zidane said after a pause.

"I guess so. I remember that battle, but it says it happened five thousand years ago…" she trailed off, remembering that with a frown, "I passed out right after that battle. When I woke up I was here; I literally crash landed outside of Madain Sari. Later that day I flew to the Mist Continent, was branded a suspect of something or other by crazy knights, then met a nice guy in a bustling town who offered me a place to stay for the night. I thought at most maybe a few years, perhaps a few decades passed, but I never imagined I would lose consciousness for five millennia."

"So I'm guessing that whole 'I lost count at ten thousand' comment from when I asked your age was true huh?" Serenity nodded, making Zidane whistle, "Where'd you find the Fountain of Youth at?"

"Don't ask, I really did find it," she said with a sigh, "Chaos broke it during a fight."

"Wha-?!" He reeled back slightly.

She shrugged, "Been around traveling the universe for thousands of years; I'm bound to have found a few things."

"Geez, I can't joke with you anymore…" he mumbled, rubbing the back of his head.

Serenity grinned, "Don't worry, I'll keep pretending I don't know everything." Seeing the look her gave her she held her hands up in front of her defensively, "I don't, I'm just joking!"

Zidane shook his head and sighed, but inside he was chuckling, "So what now?"

The question was simple, but Serenity knew it meant a lot more than what it appeared to. It made her sigh and rub her temples. "Well…I guess I can push Necron to the back of my mind at the moment since he's not around at the moment. I guess focusing on the Kisenian blossoms would be the best thing to do at the moment."

Zidane nodded, "How many more of those things do you think are here?"

"Who knows? I've only faced a blossom once before. What we just faced was a minion made from one of the blossom's seeds. The actual Kisenian blossom is pink and has the torso of a woman. It's really small and latches onto a host, looking like a broach over the host's heart," she explained.

"So we need to find that one?"

She nodded, "If we get rid of the Kisenian blossom, the minions should disappear."

Zidane processed this when something else occurred to him, "Hey, what about the Iifa tree? Kuja said he wanted Cosmos's help in getting rid of that for good."

"Yeah I haven't forgotten about that yet…There's more going on than what he's saying, I positive…but I'm not sure what yet. I don't want to just jump into something and find out I'm in over my head," she explained.

That made sense to the genome and he nodded. "So definitely stay quiet about this?"

The blond nodded, "Until we find out what's going on, I think it may be wise not to reveal that I'm Cosmos to anyone."

"I agree. But I think we should at least tell them that we know Cosmos is on our side," Zidane added.

"Definitely," Serenity replied, "I'd even be ok with telling the others I'm Sailor Moon; I may have to take that form again if we run into anymore blossoms. But speaking it in volumes may be a problem; if the Kisenian host finds out I'm around, that could lead to trouble."

"Works for me," Zidane said, standing up and offering Serenity his hand, "Well, shall we head back towards the others? I think they want to start towards the Black Mage village."

Serenity nodded and took to his hand.

"Oh! By the way, did you seriously have to play the groom?" Zidane asked.

Serenity laughed, "Don't push my wife about that, 'she's' known to be violent at times."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	25. Chapter 25

ZT: Hey everyone! Hope you're all loving the fic!

Kuja: (Rolls eyes) If they didn't they would be reading this right now.

ZT: Oh hush before I write you into a tutu.

Kuja: Hmph

ZT: I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

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Lady alpha wolf – Thanks! Here's the update!

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Taeniaea – Thanks!

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 24**

"Watch out!" Hearing the cry, a blond whipped around and by instinct unsheathing two sharp weapons, and prepared to block the attack of a…little green splotch on the ground. Zidane sighed and tapped his foot impatiently; waiting for it to come out of hiding so he could attack it without getting hit by 1000 needles.

Serenity looked at the thing in slight confusion, having noted that only Dagger and Zidane looked like they were ready to attack it while Eiko and Kuja stayed on the sidelines with her, "What is that thing?"

"A Cactuar," Kuja answered, "It's a lot bigger, but right now it's hiding under the ground, so attacks won't hurt it as much."

"Plus the stupid thing has the 1000 needles attack that he counter attacks with if you hit him while he's hiding," Eiko added, tapping her foot impatiently as she as well.

"So you have to wait for it to come out of hiding before you can attack it?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Pretty much," the silver haired man replied.

"Then why bother attacking it while it's hiding?" As she asked this, a strange noise filled the air for a moment and Zidane reeled for a second, looking completely dumbfounded and walking in circles until Dagger cast a spell to get rid of his confusing, "…Never mind."

Kuja chuckled at both the sight of Zidane and the tone in Serenity's voice when she saw it. "Yes, it is definitely one of the more humorous status effects, as long as the one inflicted by it has enough sense left to know to attack the enemy and not the party." He looked thoughtful for a moment, "So how my monkey of a brother is able to strike the enemy during these times is still a mystery to me…"

"I heard that!" Zidane growled as the creature came out of hiding.

Serenity blinked when she saw the Cactuar in full size, "It looks like a stick figure that got in a fight with a cactus. Shoot it even moves like one!"

"Ever get smacked by one of these? It FEELS like it too!" Zidane replied, moving in swiftly and taking the creature down with one hit.

Dagger sighed as she watched the creature turn back into mist, "Remember when we used to dread coming across those creatures?"

The blond who she was aiming the question at laughed and rubbed the back of his head, "Yeah they seemed so much stronger back then. We definitely went through a few a couple hundred potions going across this continent because of these guys."

Dagger nodded, "And Ethers…"

"Ahem! I was there too you know!" Eiko stomped her foot, trying to get the attention of the queen and bandit.

"True, but you came along after they had gone through this area for the first time, thus they had experience with Cactuars by then," Kuja replied.

"Good thing too; if I had been the first to spot that thing and no one else knew what it was, I might have mistaken it for a bug and tried to step on it," Serenity added.

"You would have been hit by a thousand flying needles in response had you," the silver haired genome replied.

"Owch…and if my foot was the assailant? I'd have to transform into Sailor Moon just so I could fly around and not have to use it!" she exclaimed, getting the mental image of her foot receiving the brunt of the attack…looked painful.

The little summoner huffed and put her hands on her hips, "Fine, the four of you just go into your little lovey-dovey lala lands with each other! I'll just wait till we get to the black mage village and hang out with Vivi then!"

Serenity glanced at Eiko then back at Kuja, "I suddenly feel sorry for Vivi."

"As do I," he agreed with a small smirk on his face.

Eiko let out another angry huff and stomped off down the hill towards a beach. The other four followed at a slower pace. "So where's this village at?" Serenity asked. The area they were in wasn't that massive, yet the only sign she could see of civilization was Conde Petie.

"See that forest down there?" Zidane asked, gesturing towards the massive amounts of browned trees that covered the whole area next to one side of the plateau, "It's hiding in there."

The blond looked at the forest doubtfully, "That's a lot of forest to get lost in…"

Zidane made a gesture with his hands, "Don't worry about it; I've went through there a ton of times; you won't get lost so long as you're with me."

Serenity shrugged, "Ok…I'll take your word for it…"

* * *

"WHY did I take your word for it??" Serenity sighed in exasperation as she saw that they had just entered the same place they just left…again. 

"Because I know which way we're going," Zidane answered, still walking, "There's a magical barrier so you need to walk around a bit to finally get to the village."

Kuja rubbed his temples, tired of walking around in circles as well, "Zidane, would it not be easier to simply take the barrier down? I took it down before when I needed to speak to the black mages, and with the aid of the ladies it would be no effort at all."

"He has a point…" Serenity sighed, turning around, "Space Sword Blaster!" She turned back to the group, "And aside from that, if I have to blow up another over sized owl I'm gonna go bonkers!"

Zidane sighed watching the Zemzelett she had just attacked turn back to mist, "This should be the last time we have to go through here, then we'll be at the entrance." Serenity made a pouting face but didn't argue, making it very difficult for the blond genome not to laugh. He found it amazing how she could be this powerful entity, capable of standing up against foes he probably couldn't even begin to imagine, yet here she was pouting because she was tired of walking.

"Um…Zidane?" the soft spoken voice got his attention and he looked to the dark haired queen. "What's up Dagger?" he asked.

"About when we get to the village… I know I need to talk to Steiner, and Eiko and you were to talk to Vivi, but what of the rest of the villagers? I don't believe the genomes will be much trouble, but the black mages are not exactly fond of Kuja…"

Eiko nodded, "That's right, especially with that whole thing with the 'I can help you live longer' thing. Won't they attack Kuja the instant they see him."

Hearing this made Serenity tense slightly. She knew Kuja had created the black mages and had that they weren't exactly happy with why they were made. However she wasn't aware of the fact that Kuja had done more afterwards to harm them directly. It didn't surprise her that he did, but if they were anything like Vivi they had power, and if they attacked without listening to reason, should she fight back to protect Kuja?

The silver haired man she was thinking about had noticed her tense. He guessed she was worried about how the black mages would react and put a comforting hand on her shoulder, "You needn't worry; once the black mages became aware, they were benevolent creatures. Most likely they will just go into their houses if they are worried."

Serenity looked up at him; she smiled slightly and nodded as if to say it was enough to comfort her. Zidane glanced over at them to add something as well but stopped. 'What the hell?' he thought. It was Kuja and Serenity, he was sure of that, but if he had been passing by them on the street, he would not have believed it. Serenity had that funky hairstyle she was wearing when in her Sailor Moon form, but now she wore a white gown which hugged her top then flowed out from there. Standing next to her was Kuja who, which is the reason Zidane was positive he was hallucinating, was wearing white _pants_ rather than his skirt and thong. He had on white shoes which from the shape Zidane guessed were boots which the tops were hidden by the pants. He wore what Zidane could only describe as what looked like a white, long sleeved knee length toga with a slit that started at the waist. The outfit had a grayish/silver sash around his waist and a silver design embroidered around the edges of the toga. Across his chest were five silver buttons, with the center one having a gold upturned crescent on it which reminded Zidane of the insignia on Serenity's head. Connecting each button were two small loose chains, with a little silver symbol he found looked somewhat familiar yet had no clue what it was hanging from each of the looser chains. The makeup was gone, and without it Kuja looked a bit more masculine in his features than he did whenever Zidane saw him. Hanging around his neck was a circular pendant. It had the same symbol as the ones hanging from the chains but this time in a bluish white with a silver crescent moon. In the center of the moon was a sparkling white gem which seemed to have a light shining from the core of it.

Zidane rubbed his eyes and shook his head, then looked at the two again. When he did, they were back in their normal attire. Serenity, having felt eyes on her, looked over at him. "What?" she asked innocently.

The blond genome just stared for another moment before shaking his head, "It's nothing I guess... Come on; let's get to the village." He continued walking, fully aware of the fact that he had four pairs of eyes looking at his back curiously, but didn't care. He was next to positive that what he saw was Serenity's "Moon princess" form, but why did Kuja change appearances as well? With an outfit like that, he looked like he could have been from her kingdom as well…

* * *

"Hey there it is!" Eiko exclaimed suddenly, pointing at the village that was in the clearing. 

'So this is the black mage village…' Serenity thought as they walked in through the entrance. She blinked when she noticed a bunch of Zidane look-alikes standing around. 'Genomes maybe…?' she considered. They didn't look like Vivi, so she doubted they were black mages.

Zidane took a step forward and grinned with outstretched arms, "I'm home my family!" None of the genomes even acknowledged him. He sighed and dropped his arms.

Kuja looked at his younger brother with a raised eyebrow, "What were you expecting them to do? Welcome you with open arms? They have no soul."

Serenity looked at Kuja in surprise when he said this before looking at the genomes, "No…soul?"

Kuja shook his head, "Garland only gave his angels souls. That is, Zidane, myself, and Mikoto."

"Mikoto?" she was sure Zidane said that was the name of his sister…but then again, that would make sense since he called Kuja his brother.

"Yes?" The group looked up as a girl dressed in pink and white with a bow on her tail came up. She looked a lot like Zidane…and the other genomes other than Kuja for that matter. However, one look at her eyes told Serenity that this girl was aware of her surroundings as well as herself. This was the other angel of death, the one meant to replace Zidane should that be necessary, the one who Zidane called his sister: Mikoto.

"Hey Mikoto! How've you been?" Zidane greeted cheerfully.

She gave a curt nod, "Zidane." She looked at the rest of the group, her cool gaze lingering on the unfamiliar blond for a moment before her full attention snapped to a particular person. Hey eyes widened in shock as she realized she really was looking at who she thought she was, "Kuja…"

As soon as the name was spoken, a bunch of noises almost sounding like big mice scampering on wooden floors were heard. Serenity looked over at the buildings to see adult sized Vivis running into the buildings and slamming the doors behind them.

A bunch of scampering and door slamming later, all that could be seen in the area were the genomes who stood as they did before, looking as if nothing had just happened. Kuja looked at Serenity and smirked, "Hmm… with how they scattered, you'd think Mikoto just announced the arrival of something terrifying..."

"She did," Serenity replied, "It's a guy in a skirt and thong."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	26. Chapter 26 the thank you chapter!

ZT: Hey everyone!!! Guess what? **_THIS STORY HAS REACHED 10,000 HITS!!!!_**

Kuja: (waves small flag unenthusiastically) Yay…

ZT: As a thank you, I have written a super chapter! What does that mean? Well it means that compared to the other chapters, it's VERY long! Hope you guys enjoy it and thanks again for reading! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

**Review Responses: **

Usagi Uchiha Yuy – Thanks! Scouts reborn? Hm...Maybe. You'll just have to keep reading to find out. Here's the update!

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**Of Silver Crystals and Feather **

**Chapter 25 **

It had taken Zidane and Eiko doing a lot of talking to convince Vivi and Dagger yelling at Steiner once to humble the bumbling knight, but eventually the three were able to convince the black mage and knight that Kuja meant no harm. However they still weren't able to convince the rest of the black mages yet.

Zidane huffed in annoyance when he found the hotel's door locked, "Ah come on guys! It's me!"

"Is HE with you?" a shaky voice came from the other side of the door. Everyone in the group knew who the mage on the other side was speaking of.

"Why would he not be here? He's been following us around like a sheep ever since he arrived!" Steiner bellowed in annoyance, casting a glare at Kuja.

Kuja looked at him coolly, "Yes and you have been following Zidane much in the same manner. The only difference between the two of us is my wool it well groomed while yours looks like you got in a fight with a rusted fence."

Steiner looked like he was ready to blow up, but one look from the young queen silenced him instantly.

'Wow, I wish it could have been that easy to calm Rei's temper…' Serenity thought, thinking about her scout of Mars whose only thing hotter than her flames was her temper.

"We won't open up unless HE's not with you!" came another voice, this one not as shaky so they figured it was another mage speaking.

"Aw come one guys! He's being escorted by four of the people who kicked his ass before, you don't need to worry about him," Zidane tried again, receiving a look from Kuja which made Serenity have to bite her lip to keep from laughing.

"If he's there, none of you are coming in!" said the same voice firmly.

"For creatures you claimed to be benevolent that one's pretty rude…" Serenity whispered to Kuja.

The genome shrugged, "I deserve it." As he said it, Kuja stopped to ponder his words. He had hurt the mages of this village more so than words could describe; he created them for tools of mass destruction, and even gave them an expiration date of one year. Oh yes, he had known they would become aware; he had made sure of that for his sick, twisted game back then. For sure, when it first happened he hadn't expected the mages to come aware, but had discovered so after he made his prototypes, the Black Waltzes and… Vivi. Vivi had been an experiment; he had wanted to make a child black mage to see if it could develop more magical skills as it "grew" (Judging from the fact that Vivi knocked him silly a few times with that Doomsday technique, he guessed a black mage child could). Because of that, Vivi didn't have an "expiration date"; he had the capability to live out his life to the full length of a human being's lifespan, but the other mages were another story…He guessed that it was with the minimal knowledge Mikoto had received from Garland that the Black Mages were still alive. It HAD to be the way they knew how to "reproduce", but still Garland was not the one who created the Black Mages, giving him very little knowledge on the subject other than what he could piece together from what he knew about Genomes, and Kuja doubted that he told Mikoto everything he knew, and how much knowledge had she retained from Garland's tiring speeches? With all of that adding up, the Black Mages were going to eventually start dying off unless something changed. Even now Kuja had noted from the sound of slamming doors that there were considerably few here than there were when he came to the village last time…

He looked at the door and raised his voice slightly so that those on the other side could hear him clearly, "Very well, I shall take my leave then. Zidane will tell you when I am gone." He turned his attention to the others, "I think I'll take a stroll around the village; the genomes should be able to tell you where I am if you need me." With that he bowed, turned, and walked off towards an area where he could spot light coming from.

Zidane turned to stop the silver haired genome from leaving, "Hey Kuja! Wait-"

"Zidane let him go," Serenity interrupted. He looked at her questioningly, but Serenity's attention was turned towards the retreating genome. She had seen that look in his eyes before; Kuja was thinking about the people of this village. She knew he needed some alone time to figure stuff out.

"He shouldn't have to leave though, Seren! He's changed!" Zidane exclaimed in exasperation.

Serenity blinked. Since when did Zidane call her "Seren"? She must have really bugged him with that one. "He _wants_ to be alone," she pointed out. When it looked like Zidane was about to protest again she sighed, "Give him an hour or two to think about things without all of us breathing down his back; Kuja's always had at least some space, this is a big transition for him. Besides, he'll be coming back here soon for shelter." To explain what she meant, she pointed to small patches of sky seen through the trees. Instead of the light blue of mid afternoon, the sky was a grayish color, covered in the clouds that promised rain before nightfall.

Vivi shifted his hat, "Um, I agree with Serenity. We should let Kuja go for now…until we get the other mages to calm down about him at least."

Eiko nodded, "Yeah they won't even let us in the Inn unless he's nowhere in sight; let's leave him for now."

The blond haired genome thought of a way to protest, but taking a look around, it was obvious he was outnumbered five to one so he sighed and slumped his shoulders in defeat, "Fine."

"Good," Serenity sighed as she heard the mages unlock the door, "Besides, I may need your help explaining a certain issue to Vivi and Sir Rust-a-lot."

Zidane looked at her confused, "What?"

She sighed when she noted how dumbfounded Zidane looked, "Sailor Moon perhaps?"

* * *

There was a light breeze out that afternoon. It strummed through the leaves of the trees in a soft, steady chord which accompanied the swish of water rolling over the rocks on the stream bed. The steady rhythm was accompanied by the flap of the native birds' wings as they flew from tree to tree, sometimes singing a note or two to add a little flavor to the forest's natural symphony, which seemed to be doing it's best to impress the new arrivals to the village.

A steady, rhythmic drum of boots on wood went along with this symphony, adding the final touch to the masterpiece. However, for once, Kuja paid no heed to the artistic world around him. No, his mind was not focused on music and aesthetic beauty; it was deeply engrossed in science. More specifically, it was focused on the science of life and biological engineering. Lengthening and shortening a life while developing a creature was not difficult at all for Kuja; just change some things around, tweak some things here and there and voila! You're done. Doing so after the creatures were developed though…not as simple. He didn't even know where to begin when it came to extending the lives of the black mages. Did he need some sort of spell? Or did he have to focus on a drug of sorts? The mages just stopped moving, so luckily he didn't have to worry about the bodies aging or anything like that. But that was just one problem he didn't need to figure out; he had a million more to work on still!

He sighed and brushed a pale hand through his feathery, silver bangs. Who knew that being on the "good side" could be so challenging? Deciding it might be best if he finally took note of his surrounding, the silver haired genome noted that he was standing next to a small garden being tended by a genome. She seemed engrossed in her work, but Kuja could not shake the fact that she still seemed to have that vacant expression which they all had the last time he saw the genomes in Bran Bal. Trying to take his thoughts away from the expression, he turned his attention to what she was tending to. She wasn't tending to a garden of vegetables; it looked like little green plants of sorts. 'Herbs,' Kuja concluded, not really sure how he knew this since he was positive he had never studied botany before. Perhaps it was something left behind in his soul from his previous life.

Previous life…That thought had never crossed his mind before. Garland could not construct souls so he obviously chose the three that were put in his angels of death from somewhere. Had he known Kuja's previous life? If so was the wizard the reason his previous life was dead? What was his incarnate like? Did he act like Kuja did? Was his past life even a "he"? Did he know Zidane's past life? What about Mikoto's? What were THEY like? What were their names? Were the three of them Gaians? Terrans? From another world all together like Serenity?

Kuja was so engrossed in his own thoughts they he hadn't realized that the genome had noted his presence. "Do you need something, Master Kuja?" she asked.

The voice startled Kuja out of his thoughts. Her voice sounded…pleasant. Usually genomes had no tone in their voice; it went with having no soul. Furthermore, they usually didn't speak unless spoken to…He shook his head, "No, I was just thinking…"

She seemed convinced and went back to her work, but Kuja was very confused. Was it him, or did her eyes look different that they did a few moments ago? He cleared his throat and she looked up again. No, his mind wasn't playing games on him; her stare wasn't blank anymore. Her green eyes showed curiosity as she waited to see if the silver haired genome would speak.

"A moment ago…were you not just-" Kuja shook his head, "Never mind."

"No, don't leave it there," she pressed, again shocking Kuja. Genomes didn't act like this, not unless they had souls!

"You're acting…different, than you were a moment ago," he said, choosing his words carefully.

She looked like she was pondering this information, letting her gaze rest on her garden. After a pause she spoke, "I feel different. I feel period…" She looked confused and a little disturbed by this information, "I've never felt anything like this unless I've stared at the blue light of Terra for too long."

'Ah yes, the blue light of Terra…A genome's nemesis…' Kuja thought, mentally rolling his eyes. Even he had felt a bit of unease around the blue light, but he guessed that it was because Garland kept saying that the light was terrible. For as much as he was taught to despise it, he couldn't help but feel attracted to it. The other genomes had been the same. If you spoke with them, they would say how the light was unpleasant and that the red light was what they waited for. Yet all the same, they stared at it endlessly. "So you do not like feeling?" he asked.

The genome looked down, "…I am not sure. Right now I don't because it does not make me feel good, but there would be times on Terra when I found it pleasant."

"That's confusion," Kuja stated, "When you feel it sometimes it will make your head hurt. But I am curious; has this happened to anyone else? On Gaia or Terra?"

She shook her head, "I am not sure; I have not spoken to anyone about this before."

Kuja nodded, "Thank you, I shall ask around then." He turned to leave when the genome stopped him.

"Are you traveling with the blond haired lady?" she asked. Kuja turned to her and nodded. "I don't think she's unpleasant."

The silver haired genome looked at her confused, "I find her quite pleasant myself. Who said she wasn't?"

"All the other genomes," she answered, turning back to her garden, "They say she is like the blue light."

He blinked. Serenity was like the blue light to the genomes? Well, he had always figured that the blue and red lights had to do with the twin moons since those were the colors they glowed, so perhaps it was because she was Sailor Moon. If that was the case, maybe she could shed some "light" on this issue…

* * *

"So let me get this straight, you are a soldier from another planet who has come here after having traveled the cosmos fighting evil. Not long after you arrived you discovered that one of your team members, this silver being, was being tailed so you decided to hide your identity for the time being. But now a powerful flower that has terrorized the universe has found its way to Gaia and you need to find it before it covers Gaia in more flowers and kills all living things. Is that about it?" Steiner asked, an unreadable expression placed on his face.

Serenity nodded, "Yep that about sums it up…"

"I believe living the life of scoundrels and actors combined has finally started showing its effects on the two of you," he claimed, pointing at Zidane who had told the story and Serenity who was confirming it.

The blond sighed, "Would you like me to transform into Sailor Moon to prove it to you?"

"Watch out Rusty, it involves music, lights, ribbons, feathers, and a nose bleed," Zidane grinned.

"I don't think it is in your best interest to transform, Ms. Serenity." All attention turned to Mikoto as the genome in pink spoke, "The other genomes feel wary of you much in the same manner that the black mages are wary of Kuja. Transforming may frighten them."

"I did notice that they seemed to be keeping their distance…" Dagger mused aloud, glancing around the room. There were fewer genomes in the room than usual, and those that were there were on the opposite end of the room, having migrated there after the group arrived.

Serenity looked innocently confused, "What'd I do?"

"You remind us of the blue light of Terra," Mikoto explained, "We were taught by Garland to fear the light, and also it gave those who have no souls…unpleasant feelings."

The blond frowned, "I'm sorry to hear that, but seeing that I am not doing anything at the moment other than just being here, I don't think it's something I can just turn off…"

The third angel shook her head, "I have nothing against you. I am just stating facts."

"Hey Mikoto, what's the deal with the blue lights anyway?" Zidane asked. He hadn't bothered to ask about it during the time he was in Bran Bal, but he remembered Mikoto mentioning that the souls would enter genomes when the blue light turned red.

"The blue light is…a support I suppose. It is the reason why genomes can live when they have no souls within their bodies," Mikoto answered, considering how to put it into words from what she had managed to piece together from Garland's rants.

Serenity frowned as she absorbed this information, "Keeping a body alive...As far as I knew is wasn't possible to keep a body in one piece without a soul within it, unless someone was wearing those stupid bracelets that Galaxia made…"

"Galaxia?" Mikoto inquired. Her eyes showed interest as soon as the name was spoken, but she covered it up before anyone noticed.

"Another sailor scout; she died years ago," the blond replied, "She used to have the power to rip the souls, or as we call them 'Star Seeds' or 'Sailor Crystals' out of a person's body. If someone wanted to live, she took their seeds and gave them these bracelets to keep them alive and up their powers. But those who didn't side with her…well, depending on her mood they either sparkled away, turned to dust, or…I don't even wanna describe the last one but either way, the body doesn't hold together."

This piece of information left everyone a bit dumbfounded…or very disgusted as their imaginations did the job of guessing what the last option a soulless body was. Since the voices were currently silent, the group could now hear the light tapping on he roof of the building; it had begun to rain.

Serenity stood up, "I better find Kuja; Selene knows he didn't find shelter elsewhere…" She stood up and headed towards the door.

"Hey, who's Selene?" Zidane called after her curiously.

"The goddess of the Moon," she replied before shutting the door behind her.

* * *

Serenity wouldn't have to look far at all. Kuja enjoyed the rain, but learned his lesson after his venture to Burmecia that it was best to watch it from a dry place. He was currently leaning against the wall of the items shop, watching the rain fall from under the safety of the building's canopy and letting his mind wander. He still could think of nothing to do to help the black mages with their stopping problem, and now he found himself very curious about the genomes and this whole thing about them being able to feel. Just what exactly was the blue light then? Garland had never given a concrete answer as to what it was; he always said they were better off guessing than actually knowing…But Serenity reminds the genomes of it.

He sighed and closed his eyes, pondering on the subject. The blue light was obviously from the moon, and Serenity was Sailor Moon…so maybe she was unconsciously channeling the blue moon's power. But then why not channel the red moon's as well? If they were opposing forces, should they not have cancelled each other out? Could she only channel certain powers from the moon? Or did this have nothing to do with the moons at all and it was just something about her? All he knew was that whether she knew it or not, somehow Serenity was affecting the genomes to the point that they seemed to have souls. 'You are such an enigma princess…'

"Why do you say that?" Kuja's eyes snapped open when he heard Serenity's voice. Did he say that out loud?? The instant that thought registered in his mind he also acknowledged that he was most definitely not in the black mage village anymore. He was still leaning against a wall, but it was smoother than the wood planks that made up the village shacks. And his covering from the rain was much larger, and had a much better view. It overlooked a garden of sorts and in the distance was a city, still shimmering with a majestic beauty despite the rain. Leaning on the rail opposite of him was the one who had spoke, the Serenity look alike in the white gown.

Before Kuja could process this he shifted…without commanding his body to do so. 'What is this??' he mentally question, trying to open his mouth to speak. But alas, it seemed he had no control of speech either.

His hands, which had been crossed over his chest, moved slightly as he looked down to fiddle with a charm on his top. It was then he noticed his attire was different. Had he compared notes with Zidane and Serenity he would discover that it was the same outfit Panagiotis, the 'Kuja look-alike' wore in their episodes.

All of this took but a few moments to sink in before Kuja felt himself begin to speak, most likely answering the question that the Serenity look-alike had asked before. "You not only despise storms, you fear them. Yet there you stand as close to it as possible without getting wet as if you cannot get enough of it," Kuja heard himself answer.

She turned to face him and nodded, "True, I hate storms…" She turned again to face the weather and sighed, closing her eyes and lifting her head to the clouds, "But I love the rain…" Kuja was going to again try to speak, but she wasn't finished, "It almost feels as though raindrops are blessing whatever they fall upon."

'Didn't I say something like that before?' Kuja wondered. Yes, he had called the raindrops blessings of victory when he and the Elephant lady, Queen Brahn, had conquered Burmecia…

"I suppose that's true…" Kuja heard himself say, moving away from the wall as he did to stand behind the girl, "After all, Earth is touched by the rain constantly unlike the rarity it is here, and it has the greatest blessing of all."

Serenity look-alike turned to him, looking innocently confused. "Why do you say tha-" She didn't finish as a flash and a loud clap of thunder startled the girl. She cried out in fright and buried her face in Kuja's chest. Whether he actually had control of his body at the moment or whoever did had the same reaction as he did, Kuja's arms wrapped around the small frame of the young woman in a protective, yet comforting embrace. "Shall we go in now?" he heard himself ask. The blond head nodded, her face still hidden from view, and Kuja led her towards where his body seemed to know the entrance to this…he supposed it was a palace, was.

As they walked, the woman seemed to pull herself together and was now walking beside him. Although Kuja noted that his body still kept and arm around the woman's frame, and she was making no move to remove it. "So…" she began, getting the one controlling Kuja's body's attention, "Why do you think Earth is blessed?"

Kuja felt heard himself chuckle and look down at the woman, "Is it not obvious? You travel to the planet every chance you get. I know you well enough to know you would spend your life there if given the chance." He stopped and turned his body towards hers, using the hand not around her to lift her chin gently so that she faced him. He spoke in a voice so soft that Kuja was certain he had never used that tone before, "Earth has the one thing so many would give anything for, Serenity. You're love." If Kuja had control of his eyes at the moment they would have been the size of saucers as he realized that his head was moving closer to hers…

* * *

The sound of a door opening threw Kuja right out of whatever land he was in and right back into black mage village. He looked up (and gratefully discovered that he now had control of his body again) to see Serenity exiting the inn across the bridge from him.

It took her less than a second to spot him and head over, "Hey Kuja, I was just coming to look for you…Are you alright?"

He blinked, "I'm fine…Why do you ask?"

"Well I've seen tomatoes less red," she answered bluntly, "And you look like you're a little out of breath. Are you sure you're feeling ok?"

Hearing her answer, Kuja realized that he was in fact very hot in his face and slightly out of breath. Not to mention his heart was racing as if someone had just hit him with Haste about 100 times. Who knew a dream could have such an impact on someone… "I must have dozed off while standing here," he concluded aloud.

"Must've been some dream…" the blond replied with a raised eyebrow.

"Had an interesting ending, although I snapped out of it before I saw the full end," he replied, finding himself a bit disappointed at that. It was like a book you are reading that you have to put down; you know what's going to happen anyway from all the building up, but you still want to read the ending anyway.

"I see…" Serenity said, not really sure if she did or not, but didn't know what else to say. She decided to change the subject, "So, find anything interesting while you were out and about? I found out that I am like the blue light of Terra."

"I heard that as well…" the silver haired genome said, "And I found something…interesting out. I met a genome today who...suddenly had a soul. She received it right before my very eyes."

Serenity's eyes widened, "She just up and got a soul??"

He nodded, "It was the most awkward thing. I was pondering about the lifespan of a black mage when I came across her. She was just like the other genomes at first: blank stare, didn't look like there was anyone home. Then within a matter of moments, she was speaking to me in a manner that I have never seen another genome aside from Zidane, Mikoto, and I speak." He looked thoughtful, "She said that she used to feel before when she stared at the blue light for too long…I was wondering if you might have any ideas what she meant by that."

"Well after hearing that, I think I might," her answer got Kuja's attention. "The moon has various "healing" powers. I could name a few relics from the moon right off the top of my head that I have personally witnessed bring whole civilizations back to life and made souls reincarnate in the same place so that friends and families from past lives could be together in current ones. I channel the moon's power constantly; it's just one of those things that came with being a Sailor scout of that object. So…focusing on the reincarnation thing, you have to be able to control soul distribution to some extent to do something like that. Maybe the light of the blue moon is that part of the moon's power at work. Maybe it's the power that is supposed to distribute souls to bodies in the natural fashion."

"Which would not be good for Garland since he wanted specific souls to enter the bodies, not the ones the natural set of things said should be there," Kuja caught on.

She nodded, "But a body cannot live without a soul. Ask Zidane later to find out why I know this, I don't wanna go down that memory lane again. Because a body needs a soul, he HAD to have the blue light be there in order to keep the Genomes alive until the red moon was ready to do it's job."

"And the Iifa tree was created to disrupt the flow of souls, so that the light of the blue moon would not be strong enough to grant souls to genomes, creatures exposed to the blue light but not under the care of the blue moon because they are Terrans not Gaians, unless they basked in its light for far too long," Kuja added.

"But then…what does the red moon do?" Serenity looked confused as she looked at Kuja, "Why would one of those things in the natural flow work against Gaia in such a manner?"

"Good question," he replied. Why _did_ Garland need the red moon so badly for it all to work? The silver haired genome let out a breath, "As much as I'd love to dwell on that a bit more, I highly doubt I have the mental capacity to analyze another moon. You and the blue one are enough for today!"

The blond grinned and turned on her heels to face the rain, "We're an enigma."

Kuja couldn't help but get déjà vu when she said that. He shook his head and decided to change the subject before it reached beyond déjà vu for him. "So Serenity…know anything about science?"

Serenity looked at him with an interesting expression to respond to the seemingly out of the blue question, "A bit…"

"Know anything about biology, maybe a bit about medicine and some knowledge on how to lengthen a life span?"

"Ok what's going on?" Serenity turned so that she was fully facing the genome by this point.

He sighed, "Did anyone mention to you…that the black mages can only live for one year?"

The blond blinked, "No…people failed to mention that."

Kuja turned his attention to the rain, "I made it that way…In my cruel twisted days I did that to these benevolent creatures. I want to repent for that; I know there must be a way to lengthen their life spans, but how after the body is developed? I don't even know where to begin…"

Serenity watched the genome as he walked forward so that he was just barely covered by the canopy. He had that same look in his eyes that he had earlier when he walked off; this was what had been bothering him; she was sure of it. She found herself looking at the ground, feeling pity for the man. She had been wary of the black mages when they first arrived because she was afraid they may try to hurt Kuja. She should have realized coming here was taking a toll on him anyway. "…Maybe…Cosmos can help you?" she suggested, her heart going out to the genome.

Kuja looked at her confused, "Cosmos?"

She nodded, "Cosmos is a healer; I'm sure she has something up her sleeve that can help."

"Do you really think she will help? She is an enemy to Terra, my homeland."

"You were going to ask for her help with the Iifa tree weren't you?"

"Yes but that's because the Iifa tree is Terran as well, and I figured she may go after the greater of two evils. I don't think she would do me a favor just because I asked…"

Serenity smiled warmly, "Then you've never met her."

Kuja sighed, "I still think that I'll need a miracle for that to happen…"

"Well…then let the rain bless you," she replied, turning her attention to the rain again. Kuja looked at her in shock, but since she wasn't staring at him, she was only able to catch in her peripheral view that he had turned to her. She shrugged, guessing he was confused that she would say such a thing, "I've always loved the rain. The other scouts and I used to say that it was heaven's grace raining down on the world."

Kuja smirked, trying to cover his shock that she said such a thing, "Interesting…I bet that changes when thunder begins though."

Serenity nearly blanched at the thought, "You have no idea…"

He looked at her in shock, "You _are_ afraid of thunder??!"

She put on a defensive face, "Hey! It's a common phobia!"

"Oh, n-no I wasn't making fun of you for that, it's just that, well… never mind," he sighed, looking at the rain again. He knew that the blond was looking at him again, but didn't face her for the fact that he knew his face must have been a deep shade of red for the second time that evening.

"It's no big," she said after a pause, shrugging and turning back to the rain, "I've come to terms with it; I've always been scared of thunder and lighting and always will be even though half the monsters I face are a million times scarier than anything lightning and thunder can do." She shuddered, "Just talking about it gives me chills; let's go inside the inn before we both catch colds."

"If they haven't locked us both out," Kuja smirked, following her across the bridge to the inn entrance.

"No, they wouldn't lock the door if they knew we were both out here in the-" she stopped when she turned the knob, and the door didn't budge. "They locked us out in the rain!!" she cried in disbelief, shooting a glare at the silver haired man behind her who had started laughing at her outburst. She knocked on the door, "Hello?? Can someone let us in? It's wet out here!" No answer. She pounded harder on the door, "Hey! Let us in it's soaking wet out here!"

"It's no use Serenity, they're probably further inside. That plus the rain must make it impossible for them to hear you," Kuja said, having finished his burst of laughter. "Come, the canopy we were under before kept us dryer than this one is," he said. Kuja had a point. They had only been out from under the canopy for a few moments and already their clothes and hair were being plastered down by the 'little blessings' they had just so recently called them.

Once under the safety of the larger canopy, both began to ring out their hair and clothes as much as they could. "For once my lack of clothing as you call it has come in handy…" Kuja stated as he rung out the loose part of his sleeves and the tail end of his skirt.

"That may be true," Serenity agreed, "But your makeup's running."

"Very funny Serenity; it held up in Burmecia, why would it not hold up here?" he asked, thinking that she was joking.

"Hey don't believe me, take a look," she said, pulling out a compact and handing it to him.

True to her words, Kuja noted that his face very much resembled that of a crying clown who was unfortunate enough to get stuck in the rain. "That's a lovely look…" he muttered, pulling a handkerchief from his sleeve. Like the rest of his clothes it was wet, but that was fine by him as he wiped away all the dripping face paint to reveal the person underneath it all. Serenity found herself having to look away. If she ever had any doubt that Kuja and Panagiotis were one in the same…

A few moments later Kuja walked up to her to return the compact. "Thank you," he said. Serenity nodded and put the compact away, careful not to show Kuja if she had any color on her cheeks or not. Without the makeup on, he definitely looked more masculine in his facial features than before; his face now went with the voice as far as she was concerned…

Kuja had noted that she was avoiding looking at him however and cocked his head to the side, "What? Am I too dashing for the fair maiden to lay eyes upon?"

That broke the ice really quick and Serenity found herself rolling her eyes and looking up at him, "Oh yes, such manliness is godly and should never be looked upon by those not of the gods! Pray! Why have I yet to burst into flames, 'He who puts Zeus's true form to shame'?"

Obviously Zeus heard that and didn't like it because as soon as she finished her sentence, a flash of lightning and a boom of thunder suddenly echoed through the area. Serenity jumped in shock, letting out a yelp as she did and backing towards the wall of the building.

Kuja moved over to her side, instantly dropping the taunts, "Are you alright?"

She nodded numbly, "Y-yeah, just startled by the lighting and thun-" Another round of lightning and thunder flashed and boomed above them and for the second time, Kuja found himself looking down at a head full of golden hair buried in his chest. "I hate lightning and thunder!" she moaned, her voice muffled slightly by his top.

Kuja couldn't help but acknowledge the fact that he seemed to just be replaying his dream, but didn't let Serenity know this. Instead, he just did what seemed to comfort her in his dream; he wrapped his arm around her gently yet protectively. As the two stood there in silence, Kuja let his mind go over the similarities of the woman and Serenity. He was positive they were the same person by now; he'd have to be an idiot not to know that, but what exactly WAS he seeing? Was he seeing part of her past? Or was he somehow seeing things about her through some romanticized view? Why was he in it that time? And if it was a romanticized view, why did he almost…Kuja was positive he set a new personal record for blushing in one night as his cheeks flared up again. 'Stop thinking about that!' Kuja scolded himself harshly, tightening his grip slightly on the girl in his arms when another clap of thunder echoed through the area.

He pushed aside his pondering at the moment and focused his attention on the girl in his arms. Serenity still had her face buried in his chest which meant that those claps of thunder were not getting any less frightening for her. Deciding to try something, he stared at the sky when another clap of thunder sounded above them. "Cry and wail all you want Zeus! Your fits will not get you this maiden tonight!" he yelled. When another clap did not sound he let out a dramatic, heroic laugh, "Ha ha! You see now, do you? Every time you try to intimidate the maiden with your wrath you only bring her closer to me and farther from you! Now be gone! Hunt another woman to be your bed partner tonight!" His plan worked like a charm as he looked down and noticed that Serenity was trembling slightly from keeping in laughter at his little display. "Feel better?" he asked.

Serenity looked up at him and nodded, "Much. Thanks Kuja."

"Think nothing of it, although if I knew I was going to play a jester tonight I wouldn't have removed my makeup when I did," he commented.

Serenity laughed lightly at the thought of Kuja yelling at the sky with his makeup running down his face, telling off the gods just to make her feel better. "You're a good guy, you know that?" she said, her eyes still dancing as she spoke.

Kuja was a bit taken aback by the compliment. He had heard it before from Zidane and his crew after trying to convince them that he was in fact on their side, but when Serenity just said it to say it, without him doing something in which he expected the compliment, it was…nice. "Th-thank you…" he said, feeling his cheeks burning again as he did. Why on Gaia did he have to blush so much tonight?? Looking at her though, Kuja found the answer staring back at him with innocent blue eyes that showed more purity than he could ever imagine. He was suddenly very aware of the reason why he tried to kiss her in that dream.

Serenity looked at him confused. Was he that surprised by the compliment? "Are you ok?" she asked, her eyes showing concern.

Kuja nodded, "Yes, I'm fine. I just realized something." Seeing her curious eyes, he continued, "Serenity, I think I-"

"OH MY GOSH! I'm so sorry you guys I didn't realize they locked the door!" Zidane's voice was heard along with the bang of the inn door flying open. It was obvious from his shifted clothes and messier than usual hair that he had just woken up.

"About time!" Serenity exclaimed, casting a glare at her partner.

Of course, she was completely unaware of something very obvious that Zidane caught onto very quick. "…What'd I miss?" he asked, noticing how Kuja had his arms wrapped firmly around Serenity's waist and how her fingers were curled around the fabric of his top.

Both looked at each other before realizing what he saw and sprang away from each other. "Nothing!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Right…" Zidane's voice came out sly and knowing, his history with women making him fully aware that 'nothing' did not just happen.

"Oh get your head out of the gutter Zidane," Serenity huffed, getting over her little shock, "You know what thunder, lightning, and me add up to!"

Zidane's eyes widened, "Thunder and lightning's been going on out here?? Crud I'm sorry Seren! Get in here!" He gestured for them to come inside before backing away from the door.

Serenity shook her head, muttering something about crazy teens and hormones affecting their brains. She sighed and turned her attention to Kuja, "So what were you saying before Mr. Tribal's grand entrance?"

He opened his mouth to finish what was on his mind but stopped. No, before Zidane's entrance it would have worked, but not now; where was the class in just out and saying something like that? The silver haired genome shook his head, "It can wait. Let's go inside for now. The gods know we both have a few choice words for whoever locked that door in the first place."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	27. Chapter 27

ZT: Hey everyone! Hope everyone's enjoying the story so far.

Kuja: (Makes another check mark on his "Quotes ZT uses constantly" notepad) You need to be more creative with what you say.

ZT: Why? This is just the intro.

Kuja: That doesn't give you an excuse! This is just as much part of the story as the meat of it!

ZT: …No it's not; it's a way for me to get my creative juices running.

Kuja: I'm sure.

ZT: Whatever…I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9.

Kuja/ZT: Enjoy! (ZT look at Kuja incredulously)

Kuja: (Shrugs) Told you, no creativity.

**Review Responses:**

Firehedgehog – Thanks. I loved the mushy scene too.

Taeniaea - Thanks

**Of Silver Crystals and Feathers**

**Chapter 26**

His boots were pounding against the hard ground as he rushed through the area. Normally this would fluster those in the vicinity because it disrupted the peace and tranquility this place usually radiated. Normally he would get scolded from the elders and they would tell him how it was not proper to run in such a place and when he was of such a stature. Right now was an exception. Seeing a figure suddenly block his path, he narrowed his eyes, unsheathed a shining blade, and cut through it with perfect ease. He didn't have time to deal with all the small fries! He needed to get to the castle! He heard a battle cry adjacent to him and spotted a dark haired woman battling a group of those creatures out of the corner of his eye. He knew this girl, and she looked like she needed help. He stopped and concentrated on his sword "Tidal flame!!" Flames rushed through the area, incinerating the creatures in the vicinity but leaving those who were his allies unharmed.

The woman turned to him, "The princess! Where is she?"

Perhaps a thank you would have been what some expected, but in this case and situation, he knew that what she said was the more important question. "I think she's at the castle."

"No one's guarding her?!" she cried out in shock and terror.

"Where do you think I'm going?" he replied, taking off running again. The noise around them made it too loud to hear footsteps, but he was certain that the dark haired woman was following right behind him.

That is until something made them both stop in their tracks. An evil presence, stronger than the one that was already there, filled the area. They looked to where it was coming from to find a massive shadow rise from the ground, taking the form of a creature that looked more terrifying and powerful than anything they had faced so far in this battle. As soon as the creature formed, the two saw three others run towards them. They both knew them well. The five said no words, but spoke volumes in their eyes. The woman and the three newcomers would deal with the monster; he was to find the princess.

He watched the four leave with a hint of sadness in his eyes. He knew his part was just as important, but part of him wanted to fight along side them; they were his teammates and friends and…he knew he would never see them again. He closed his eyes and mourned his loss for a moment, before opening them again and rushing towards the castle with the same vigor as before. He was going to lose four people he loved tonight; he'd be damned if he was going to lose more!

The number of creatures and people battling lessened as he got closer to the castle. It seemed that his allies had managed to keep the enemy from entering the palace. This eased his nerves considerably; if no enemies were able to get to the princess, they wouldn't be able to harm her!

He ran into through the entrance and across the empty ballroom towards the stairs. He couldn't help but sigh when he thought about the fact that just less than an hour ago he had been laughing and dancing in this very room with many who now lay dead outside the castle's walls. 'Happy Anniversary…' he thought bitterly, racing up the stairs.

"Duck!" He instantly lay across the steps when he heard the familiar voice. An instant later, a massive attack and three creatures went sailing over his head, plummeting to their death in the room below. He got to his feet again and finished going up the steps.

He knew the voice and seeing the face confirmed that he knew the name of the spell caster as well, "P-"

"We have no time for idle chitchat; I saw that prince and the princess out on the balcony," the person interrupted, turning and rushing towards the said place. Following, he found it ironic that this was one of those people who used to scold him for running in the halls.

They got there not a moment too soon and perhaps one moment too late. The two rushed onto the balcony just in time to see the prince fall, having been stabbed in the chest by the blade of one of his own soldiers. The princess was standing there, horror struck by what she just witnessed.

He knew the spell caster's blood was boiling in the way his own was. How dare these monsters make such an innocent soul witness such a sinful act! They both sprung into action. The spell caster confronted the one who killed the prince while he took a defensive stance in front of her. There were other creatures coming, and he had had enough of playing games with these creatures. As soon as the spell caster finished dealing with the murderer, he would deal with that little army…

He felt a hand on his arm and turned his head slightly to look at the princess standing behind him. He gave a slight nod to show that he was paying attention to her and she wrapped her arms around him from behind. "I'm scared…" she whispered into his back, "I don't want to lose anyone else…"

"I'll never leave you," he replied reassuringly to her, even though his gaze was back on the creatures and the spell caster's battle. The spell caster had just let out a stream of energy which was a mixture of blue and red, making the majority of it look purple. The person he attacked cried out in pain as she was thrown away from the balcony, obviously not expecting such a powerful attack to be unleashed from the spell caster. He and the spell caster switched places, with the spell caster taking the princess up in his arms while he walked to the edge of the balcony.

He did not bother to unsheathe his sword; he did not need it for what he was going to do. He closed his eyes and pressed his hands together. Slowly, he moved his palms away from each other to form a triangle with his hands. He was the knight of that which supported all others in this solar system. Because of that, unlike most, he did not have just one element he controlled, but three. A triangle made out of a thread of energy formed around the front of his hand with each point glowing with an orb of each of his elements: fire at the top, light on the bottom right corner, and darkness on the bottom left corner. Suddenly all the points shot energy beaming into the middle of the triangle, combining into one. His eyes snapped open, "PRISM'S MIGHT!" The energy at the center of the triangle shot out, expanding as it did to unleash the multi-elemental attack in the shape of a massive triangular prism. The creatures coming their way were destroyed by the flames and darkness along with many other creatures that were in the vicinity. However their allies were only touched by the light, healing their weariness and wounds so that they could go on and continue their attempts to drive the enemy away from their kingdom.

The attack died away and he turned to face the spell caster and princess, wiping his brow and taking a few deep breaths to pull himself together after having unleashed his most powerful attack, "Piece of cake."

The princess smiled at him while the spell caster gave a nod of approval. However their smiles vanished an instant later, making him wonder what was wrong.

"Such power, and to think I was going to waste my time trying to find a powerful star seed among those already dead." Before he could even turn around to see who spoke, a sharp, burning sensation ripped through his stomach. He saw the shock and terror in the spell caster and princess's eyes, and knew exactly what had happened. His vision began to get blurry as his eyelids grew heavy and the air became much thicker. Finally gravity decided to pick it up a notch as well and he fell forward, still having enough control over his senses to feel the blade that had stabbed him from behind slide out of his body, presumably because the one who stabbed him was still holding onto it. His hearing was still working as well, and he heard the princess crying for him to stand up, to open his eyes, to say something, to do anything that he wanted to do but just couldn't get his body to respond to. Her voice seemed to get more and more distant as she yelled. Was his hearing going? Or was the spell caster pulling her away from the battle, away from the site he must be and the one who stood by with a bloody sword in hand?

The sound of footsteps nearby yet sounding a little further than usual made him think it was a bit of both. "Sorry, but you can't die just yet. I still need something from you," the voice which he had heard behind him spoke. His attacker used her booted foot to roll him on to his back. He forced his eyes to open so that he could see her, and his eyes widened. "Y-you?!" he managed to get out. He recognized her; he recognized her very well. When did she get here? Wasn't she one of the protectors? Wasn't she one their side?? He saw the look in her eyes and the malicious smirk on her face and knew the answer to the last two questions may have once been yes, but were now no. What happened to that amazing woman he had heard all the tales of? What happened to the woman every girl he worked with wanted to be?? What happened to the person he himself idolized?! "Wh….why?"

She crossed her arms and looked down at him, "Take a look around you, prince. This kingdom, the greatest, most peaceful kingdom in the galaxy is now at war. In order to keep wars from breaking out, all should be ruled under one; one who can keep all her subjects in line. I am the only one with that power. Still…" she knelt down next to him and tilted his chin with her thumb and index finger so that he could face her more, "It would be a shame to see such a powerful knight and with such a pretty face go to waste…join me, become my servant and I'll give you more power than you could ever imagine."

Instead of telling her how he felt, he showed her by spitting in her face. How he had managed to spit in her face and actually hit it when he could hardly even breathe was a mystery to him, but despite himself, he did find it rather amusing to see the look on her face when she used the back of her gloved hand to wipe the red blob away. Red? Well that explained the copper taste in his mouth…

"Too bad," she said, a little anger in her voice, "Your powers and skills would have made you an excellent right hand man." There was a bright light and something stabbed his chest right over his heart, quickly followed by the feeling of something being pulled out of him. His whole world began to fade and the last thing he saw was the woman stand up with a small gem in her hand. The last thing he heard was the princess's scream.

"_**ERYMANTHUS!!!!"**_

* * *

"WHOA!" Zidane cried out, shooting up to a sitting position. He quickly looked down, checking his chest and stomach for any wounds. He sighed with relief when he found nothing, but that didn't stop him from feeling on edge. 'That dream…it was so real!' he thought. Normally your senses didn't work when you were asleep; a dream was just a figment of your imagination after all. But he sure as hell could _feel_ all that went on in the dream, and it terrified him. His legs burning when he rushed to the palace, the dull throbbing in his body when he connected with the stairs a bit too quickly, the out of breath and fatigue after casting that spell which took out a chunk of that army (he had to admit that part was actually kinda cool), and the pain and suffering from being stabbed by that woman…

He shook his head, and took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. He glanced around the room he was in, finding himself still at the inn of Black Mage Village. It was still dark in the room, so he guessed it was still the middle of the night. He could hear the rain pattering on the roof as well, obviously the rain hadn't let up yet. 'No chance of going outside to walk this off then…' he thought, rubbing his temples. He didn't get it; in the dream, he knew exactly what was going on, yet now he didn't have a clue about it. He seemed to know wherever he was and why he was there…but not now. He couldn't even think of a place remotely similar to that on Gaia _or_ Terra! So how did his mind manage to think up that place…and in such detail?! Sure the place was falling to ruins, but while he could also remember how it was before it looked like that. Nothing was out of place; nothing jumped as it usually did with places and dreams.

And also the people…he shook his head. Those people he came across - the four in the battlefield, the dead prince, the prince's killer, that shadow creature, and the one who attacked him – he was certain that he had never seen them before, yet he was able to see them so clearly. Why was that? He knew why he could see the princess and the spell caster so well; those positions were filled by Serenity and Kuja for some reason. He sighed and rubbed his temples. "Seren, why am I suddenly dreaming about you?" he wondered quietly.

"Because you're secretly in love with me," a groggy yet sarcastic voice from the bunk below his answered, startling him, "Go back to sleep Zidane."

Zidane thought of making a sarcastic remark back to her, but decided that it must have been his original outburst that startled her awake in the first place, and she was probably already asleep again. Sighing, he lay back down and closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep and hoping he didn't have that same nightmare. Little did he know, he was not the only one who woke up that night, four others woke as well and only one of them was awakened by him…

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time! 


	28. Chapter 28

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Kuja: (blinks) Am I seeing things or are you finally updating this story?

ZT: Nope, I think I finally killed my writers block (throws a party)

Kuja: Yes how many months later?

ZT: (Party suddenly comes crashing down) Party pooper

Kuja: I know

ZT: Aaaaaaaaaaanyway, I'm so sorry for such a late update. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 27

A strained growl rumbled in Kuja's throat as he leapt to take hold of the helm Erin had just been thrown from. When the team had left Black Mage Village that morning and met up with Cid on the Hilda Garde 4, things had been tense. Cid was not very partial to the idea of Kuja coming along for the ride, and even after Garnet was able to convince him to let Kuja aboard, the air was still so thick with tension that Zidane and Serenity had both taken out their daggers at one point and tried to cut it.

However, all of that was thrown aside when a larger issue arose. The storm that had passed over Black Mage Village was going south while the ship was heading northwest to Esto Gaza. Where this new storm came from so suddenly no one knew, but it didn't take a former villain who had knowledge of monster making such as Kuja to know that this thing was not nature made. After all, raining water was natural, raining mist monsters was not. From his spot at the helm, Kuja could see the flashes of Magic spells, summons, and weapons attacking the monsters that flew from the ominous clouds above. He knew they needed him out there, even his faithful silver dragon was tearing away at the lesser dragons that dared fly too close the ship for his liking, but with all of the Gaians being thrown left and right, it seemed that the silver haired Terran was the only one keeping the ship from spiraling down into the depths of the ocean below.

Bright lights and swirling feathers entered his line of sight and he knew that Serenity had finally transformed into Sailor Moon. A second later, two white wings flashed in contrast to the grayish black sky as she flew to meet the creatures head on. He watched as she weaved in and out of the monsters, blasting them away with a scepter as she did, until she was out of site beyond the dark clouds.

The silver haired genome watched the spot where the blond had disappeared to; he hadn't realized she was that strong…

_It seems you have made some powerful allies of your old enemies…_ Kuja couldn't suppress a gasp when he heard the familiar old voice. "_I have no time for you Garland,_" his sharp telepathic reply was meant to end the conversation as soon as it began.

The old wizard was not willing to give up the conversation that easily. _Now now, you have been gone for quite awhile…have you found Cosmos's whereabouts yet?_

"_She's not exactly the easiest person to find..._" Kuja turned the wheel, making the ship jolt quite a bit, but also managing to barely avoid the top of a mountain that had come into view. A mountain that high? Good, the only mountains of that height were either connected or near a continent.

_Kuja…might I remind you that time is not a luxury you have?_ The silver genome frowned at this. How could he forget? _Do I need to give you a little nudge to get you moving? I know it shouldn't take you this long to learn what you want to learn, even the whereabouts of Cosmos._

Kuja couldn't help but smirk at what he believed to be an empty threat, "_A 'nudge' dear Master? You told me before that if I did not do your bidding you would possess my body and do your bidding through me. However you and I both know you need to be near me in order to do such a thing, and you cannot leave the Iifa tree to come to me in the state you are in. So what 'nudge' is this you speak of?_

The old wizard did not respond in words. The next thing Kuja knew was nothing but pain. It trembled through his body like nothing he had felt before. The pain he felt when facing against Zidane and his friends was nothing compared to this. The attacks of the Iifa tree? Mere scratches. The Invincible's destructive beam? Just a flashy light show. It took all Kuja had just to keep his two hands on the helm as he fell to his knees.

* * *

As soon as Sailor Moon was out of view of the Hilda Garde 4, she got serious. Dismissing her Moon scepter, she summoned her Cosmic staff. Flying at top speed, her staff cut through the beasts like a hot knife through butter. "Where are all these things coming from?" she asked herself, trying to find the source of the attack and, hopefully, whatever was creating this monster storm.

Going from monster to monster, the scout soon found herself flying above the massive storm clouds, and looking down upon a few peculiar things. The first was that the top of the "storm clouds" were flat. She wasn't a specialist in the field, but she was almost certain that storm clouds were supposed to be flat at the bottom and "fluffy" at the top, not resembling some really big, grayish black pancake. The second thing she noticed was that up here there were no monsters and third the top of the clouds look solid. She narrowed her eyes and focused on the clouds. Soon, the dark formless masses began to swirl before parting to her will, revealing a black, glassy sheet hidden between the so-called storm clouds. Dark electricity crackled over the surface, and the moon scout could barely make out through the dark transparent glass mist monsters forming at the bottom of the crystal before dropping down past the bottom clouds to face her comrades.

"_The Dark Crystal?!_" she realized with a gasp what she was looking at. How in Selene's name had so much of it been transferred halfway across the universe from Nemesis to Gaia? She frowned, dismissing her Sailor Moon form. There was no way she was taking chances with something like that…

She closed her eyes as silvery white light enveloped her, transforming the golden moon child into the silver Lady of the Stars. Cosmos reached her free hand to the heavens, the stars glowing brighter under the command of their mistress as she took in their power. Once she was sure she had enough, she let loose the power on the crystal below, enveloping the whole area in white light.

* * *

Back on the ship, Zidane threw a phoenix down an oncoming zombie before something beating at the back of his mind caught his attention. Looking up, he noticed that the amount of monsters dropping upon them had suddenly decreased considerably, but he was sure that's not what had caught his attention.

Images suddenly flashed through his mind. He saw the vast openness of space, covered in countless amounts of shining stars. Then suddenly he was up closer, and many of the stars he saw were far away galaxies, each holding billions of stars each. He would focus in on one and the brilliant flames of a star almost seemed to touch him yet not burn, then he would be pulled back to see all of the planets encircling that star which gave them life. It would suddenly focus in on a planet and he would see trees, flowers, animals, and everything else that the light affected and gave strength to. He would see other stars flash in a massive explosion, tearing apart all things in the universe surrounding them, and others grow in size, swallowing the celestial objects near it. Some stars would fizzle out and become nothing but black rocks floating in the sky. Others would create new solar systems in their explosions, giving way to new life in the chaotic fashion which was the universe's way of creating new worlds for life to live on. All the while, a soft silvery light shown upon everything, giving Zidane a feeling of serenity as he saw these new images - which he was sure most people upon Gaia could not even fathom – flow through his mind.

"_So this is the power that Cosmos represents…_" Zidane thought, before turning back to help the group with a Behemoth that had landed on deck.

* * *

Kuja suddenly felt whatever was causing the pain stop. Although he was glad to have…whatever Garland had done, come to an end, he was also curious as to why. Before he could say anything, he heard Garland's chuckles in his mind. _She will never change._ The silver haired genome wanted to know what the old wizard meant by that, but he was gone.

* * *

Cosmos watched the Dark Crystal crumble under her power. After a few moments, she glanced around and noticed that the area was still pure white. Shouldn't the light have started dying away by now?

_Sailor Cosmos…_

The silver haired scout looked around as she heard the soft musical voice.

_Sailor Cosmos…!_

"I am here Guardian Cosmos," she replied upon seeing the little silver orb floating her way. She held out her hand and the orb landed in it, fading away to reveal a tiny woman with long flowing white hair and a flowing gown nearly transparent it was so light in fabric.

Guardian Cosmos looked up upon her sailor soldier with a gentle smile. _It has been awhile, dear Lady of the Stars._

The Sailor Scout couldn't help but smile back. The little guardian had never been able to leave the Cauldron for long, but she had always managed to come for Serenity when she needed her, whether for information or just to quell the loneliness building inside of her when her friends had passed.

_I wish I was able to say I am just here to ensure you are in good health…but I am afraid I am not…_ the little guardian said, her eyes filling with sadness.

Cosmos nodded in understanding, "Does this have to do with that Dark Crystal?"

_Unfortunately yes…the one who brought that crystal was attempting to draw you out into the open…I believe someone upon that planet wants to use your power for malevolent deeds._

"Someone's trying to bait me out? Do you have any idea who?"

Guardian Cosmos shook her head. _I cannot tell who this person is, though I am sure it is not a new face…the power, the knowledge of former enemies and power that would draw out your power, this person knows you well… _She looked deep into the silvery blue eyes of the sailor scout, _If it were up to me, I would have you leave this planet immediately. However, I know you won't so I only ask that you take care dear Moon Princess. We have lost so many beautiful warriors from your solar system as it is; I could not bear to see the loss of one more._

The larger girl smiled and nodded, "I'll be careful, I promise." The smaller of the women looked strangely at the larger one, before smiling gently. Cosmos gave her a confused look, "What?"

_Serenity, it is fine to ask for help when you need it…_ Upon seeing the scout's confused gaze, she continued. _That young man has already fought along side of you in your past and present…tell him of his past, he could be a great asset in this new fight._

Cosmos stared at her little guardian for awhile before it came to her, "Do you mean…?"

_The choice is yours, but I think he deserves to know…_

Before Cosmos could say another thing, Guardian Cosmos vanished and she found herself in the middle of the sky again. _"Tell him of his past…?"_ she floated in the sky contemplating what Guardian Cosmos said. Whether she was up their for a few minutes or a few hours, she wasn't sure but by the time she floated back down to the ship in her Sailor Moon form, she had made her decision.

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


	29. Chapter 29

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Kuja: Wow! I didn't expect you to update until next year.

ZT: You have little faith in me…

Kuja: Of course not.

ZT: Whatever…I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 28

By the time Sailor Moon landed back on the ship, the sailors had already managed to get their balance and were landing the Hilde Garde 4 on the Lost Continent. She stretched her arms and let out a sigh as she dismissed her scout form, and glanced around. After all the excitement, it looked like everyone went to go get some rest before making the rest of the journey to Esto Gaza.

Well, almost everyone that is. Serenity walked over and helped Zidane pick up some weapons dropped by the various mist monsters that had attacked the ship and toss them into a pile to be burned later. Both wouldn't have minded taking a rest like the others, but the two Tantalus members also knew that if they got the job done now, then that's one chore they wouldn't have to worry about once their rest was over.

Once all of the smaller items were moved, the two looked over at some of the larger weapons. Zidane and Serenity took one look at the massive blades of the Iron Man and groaned. "I vote for a rest," Zidane suggested, sitting down as he did.

Serenity nodded and sat down as well, "I can't believe you guys fought all these monsters and you don't have a scratch!"

"Well, having Dagger and Eiko around helped out a bit on that part…" he replied, rubbing the back of his head. He glanced at the blond sailor scout, "But what about you?" Serenity looked at him confused. "I'm pretty sure if those clouds weren't in the way, the whole crew would have caught a glimpse of the 'Silver being' again…"

She blinked in surprise, "How'd you know?"

"Honestly? When you're in your regular form, you feel 'starry', but never in the way I felt earlier. I could actually _see_ them in my mind," he replied. "What happened up there?" he asked.

The sailor scout opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again. She focused her attention on the ground.

Zidane let out a sigh of exasperation, "Serenity, I know that look. What are you trying to half answer now?"

She looked up at him and shook her head, "It's not that. I'm just trying to figure some things out without making my head spin off in confusion."

Now it was the genome's turn to look confused, "What do you mean?"

The blond looked at the ground, "Well…I guess what happened up there is easy enough to explain. The cloud was concealing a massive amount of Dark Crystal, a powerful item filled with dark power that can either be unleashed as a raw energy attack, or be used to create youma. I don't know how or why it was creating mist monsters when it normally focuses on creating a type of monster called a 'Droid', but that's what was making the monster storm."

"So what's the confusing part?" Zidane asked.

"Well how it got here for one," Serenity replied, "The Dark Crystal comes from my home galaxy halfway across the universe. Moving something that size would be tough enough, but that stuff either messes with your mind or drains you unless you have enough power to control it."

"Well who used it last time? It sounds like you had an enemy that used this power before; it could be that enemy again," the genome reasoned.

"And that's where it gets confusing…" Serenity sighed. "See…years ago when I was first starting out as a sailor scout, a little girl came from the future asking for my help. The ones following her were the ones who used the Dark Crystal, and Wiseman was the only one who wasn't manipulated by it."

Zidane crossed his arms and looked at the ground, "Well you said she was from the future right? Maybe this is before you defeated him."

"Eh...no I don't need to defeat him again…he doesn't exist." Zidane looked like she had completely lost him and she sighed, "When Chaos came into the picture, he completely altered the timelines. Wiseman was a human who was supposed to be defeated by me a thousand years after that jerk appeared, but…since Chaos kinda destroyed my world…he was kinda never born."

"So…you defeated someone from the future…who is from a different future…so he doesn't exist, and thus there is no one who can use the Dark Crystal in existence right?" Zidane pieced together slowly.

"Yup pretty much," Serenity replied.

Zidane rubbed his temples, "My head hurts now."

The scout grinned, "Now you know why I took the time to think about what I was going to say."

To this the male bandit smirked. Then his smirk disappeared and he sighed again, standing up and walking to the edge of the ship.

"Something else bothering you?" the Serenity asked. When Zidane didn't reply right away, she concluded that he didn't want to reply and started working on moving some of the larger items into the pile.

"…About Cosmos…" The scout stopped what she was doing when her partner spoke. "If anyone else could sense your power like I can, they would have said something by now. But…no one else has." He looked at her, "Why is it that I can tell that you're Cosmos and others can't?"

Serenity hesitated, and Zidane realized he knew the answer. "…This has to do with Erymanthus, doesn't it?"

The scout's head snapped up so quick, Zidane was positive she had whiplash. "You know?!" she gasped.

"Only a little…actually, I'm not sure if I know anything about it," he admitted, "Sometimes, when I would think about the questions I wanted to ask you, even before I learned about Sailor Moon, and then something else in the back of my mind would scream otherwise, like I knew the answers without actually knowing them, and I didn't want to know the answers. I thought it was my instincts. But then…I had a strange dream the other night, one that I- well, you were in it and called me Erymanthus…I'm guessing that I have some connection to this person, as do you, but I have no idea how or why…"

Serenity sighed, rubbing her head, "I really didn't want you to know about this…" She knew Zidane was looking at her curiously, and knew she had to continue, "You know how I said that back in my past I was a princess of the moon?" She paused and Zidane nodded for her to keep going, "It's a little more complicated than that…see, I _am_ the moon princess, but…I guess you could say I'm reincarnated."

"Reincarnated? As in…you were the princess in another life?" Zidane asked, raising an eyebrown.

The scout nodded, "Yeah, but somehow, my title was brought over with me into my new life, when my mother used the Imperial Silver Crystal to give my court and myself a new life."

Zidane nodded slowly, processing the information, "So you're mother, the queen I'm guessing since you were a princess, used the power of this 'Imperial Silver Crystal' to give you and your court new life, right?" Serenity nodded, "Sounds like you had an untimely death."

"We did," she replied, "I was around sixteen when the Negaverse attacked my kingdom, destroying everyone…including myself apparently."

"Apparently?"

Serenity sighed again, "And that's where it gets complicated, even for me…" She took a second to figure out what she wanted to say next, "…What I had been told about my past was that I had a forbidden love affair going on with the Prince of Earth. He was killed when the Negaverse attacked, then in grief, I committed suicide. My court, the sailor scout team I worked with as Sailor Moon, committed suicide right afterwards. The queen was overcome by grief and ended the battle, sealing the enemy and destroying the Moon Kingdom in the process, giving us new life one thousand years in the future in hopes that the future would be safe. But…if the enemy did arise again, my court and I would reawaken as the Sailor Scouts in order to combat the evil."

"Sounds like you know what happened…but what does Erymanthus have to do with this?" the genome asked.

"He's the reason why I completely doubt the story I was told."

Zidane blinked in surprise, "Why?"

"According to what I had been told, the scouts were the only members of my court. But then…right before Galaxia made an appearance, I learned of Erymanthus and another person, Panagiotis." The genome stayed quiet and she continued, "Both were members of my court; Panagiotis was a high priest of the moon kingdom, and Erymanthus the prince of the Sun…Since all my court members and I were technically reborn as ourselves, we all look and sound the same." She took a deep breath, "You sound and look exactly like Erymanthus."

Zidane sat there for a few moments in complete silence. Then he stayed silent a few more moments, blinking. Then he finally spoke, "I am Erymanthus?"

Serenity nodded, "From what I can tell…"

"And…I'm going to take a wild guess and say that Panagiotis is Kuja…right?"

"How did you- never mind, why are you acting so cool about this?" she asked.

He shook his head, "Well, after learning my whole past as a genome, this is kinda refreshing, kinda learning that I'm a-" He stopped so short, that Serenity had to look at him. Apparently, it just donned on him what she was talking about, "_I'M A PRIN-_mrff!"

Serenity clapped her hand over his mouth, "Shh! Do you wanna wake up the others?!"

Once she was sure the genome had calmed down, she let him go. Zidane rubbed the back of his head, "Wow…I don't think I ever expected to be royalty. But, why didn't you tell me? I mean it's a lot to digest, but other than the initial outburst, you should know I wouldn't take information like that too hard…"

"It wasn't you're reaction I was worried about…it was you." The blond girl let her eyes focus on the ground, "Every single member of my court reawakened as sailor scouts…Before they did, they all had their dreams. Ami wanted to be a doctor, Minako an actress, Makoto a restaurant owner, Rei was going to run the Cherry Hill temple…but most of their dreams they still talked about, but put on hold or turned away golden opportunities because it was their 'duty' to protect the Moon Princess first… I didn't want that to happen to you too."

Zidane let this sink in and sighed, "I never realized you girls didn't have a choice as being sailor scouts. I thought you kinda, I dunno, if you had a sailor crystal you could apply to be a sailor scout or something."

Serenity laughed at this, "I wish! If you have a Sailor Crystal, you're a scout or knight if you like it or not."

Zidane laughed as well. Then after a few moments, a thought occurred to him that made him frown, "I don't get it though…" Serenity looked at him questioningly and he continued, "Why were you guys reborn at a different time than Kuja and I? Shouldn't we all have been reborn at the same time?"

"I've been wondering that myself…" she admitted, "I've been wondering about that ever since I realized you were Erymanthus, but I can't figure out an answer…"

He sighed, "And there's no way to figure it out, is there?"

She shook her head, "No, usually it would be Luna or Artemis who would fill us in. The only exception was when the scouts and I went to the moon kingdom ruins and spoke to the spirit of my mother."

Zidane's attention was caught by this, "How'd you do that?"

"Well there was a machine that she left a memory of herself in which we could communicate with, but it ran out of power a long time ago…" Serenity's words trailed off and Zidane noticed that she looked deep in thought.

"What's up?"

"…The Moon Kingdom was powered by the Imperial Silver Crystal…at the time we were still new to everything, so I didn't think that the machine must be powered by it as well," she replied, her tone of voice saying that she was still thinking about what she said.

He nodded, "So, all we need to do is use this Imperial Silver Crystal and we can power that machine, talk to the dead queen, and get some answers to what's going on?"

"That's the plan," Serenity answered.

"Okay…question: How would we get to this dead kingdom halfway across the universe before I die of old age, and where do we find this crystal?" Zidane answered.

Serenity smirked, "I can teleport, and right here." She opened up the palm of her hand and the crystal materialized floating above it.

The genome got down at eye level with the floating crystal. It was small; if the pieces of the jewel that made up the royal pendants was in one piece, he was certain it would be larger than it. But, he could feel the power radiating from it. It was more immense than anything he had felt before. Greater than an Eidolon, stronger than the Invincible's eye, drawing more attention than Necron's presence, even the Crystal could not hold a candle to this thing… Yet, it also filled him with serene feelings, and a sense of hope.

"This is what gives you power…isn't it?" he asked.

"It's more than that…this is my Sailor Crystal," she replied, making him look up in shock. This powerful item…was her Sailor Crystal? Her soul was that powerful? _She_ was that powerful?? He sighed and sat down in shock, "I suddenly feel sorry for all the enemies who ever came across you."

Serenity laughed and gave the genome a hand standing up. He quickly jotted down a note to the others, claiming that he wanted to show Serenity some of the sites before heading over to Esto Gaza. Once he was done, he placed it where the others would see it and returned to the scout.

"Ready?" she asked.

Zidane nodded, "Yeah. Oh! And Seren…" She looked at him questioningly. He smiled, "You know…I'm aware that you are powerful, more so than I, so I know you don't need a bodyguard. But…even if there was no 'destined bond' between us, I'd still protect you if you needed me; I care for you."

Serenity gave a smile of gratitude, before concentrating on her power. A white aura surrounded the two and in a quick flash, they were gone.

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


	30. Chapter 30

ZT: (whistles a tune while munching on crackerjacks)

ZT: (whistles a tune while munching on crackerjacks)

Kuja: You're in a good mood today…should I be scared?

ZT: Nope I'm in a good mood.

Kuja: I'm terrified.

ZT: Good for you, lets not keep the readers waiting. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 29

Zidane was no stranger to teleportation; he had come across it many times when he was introduced to Terran technology during his adventures. The genome was prepared to feel sensations that instincts would say were not normal, and to get to a new place in nearly an instant.

But Terran teleportation was not the Sailor Teleport. Holding onto Serenity's hands for dear life once the flash of white light happened, he found himself in a transparent white bubble speeding through space at such a speed that he could hardly even catch a glimpse at the celestial objects surrounding them, even though he was certain that the objects where supposed to be millions, billions, maybe even more miles away from each other. The flash of an object, then the pitch black of empty space, then another flash of an object, this cycle repeated over and over again an a pace that Zidane could hardly keep up with, and his stomach was starting to let him know that it didn't like it anymore than his eyes did.

Just when the monkey tailed boy thought that he couldn't take it anymore, they stopped. Feeling hard ground beneath his feet, Zidane flopped face first on the ground, hugging whatever solid material he was on. "I've never been so happy to see land!" he exclaimed.

Serenity laughed and shook her head, thinking of saying something smart, but deciding against it. Instead, she turned her attention to the surrounding area, and her mirth faded. Sensing the change in his partner's attitude, Zidane picked himself up and looked at her.

He did a double take. During the Sailor Teleport, he had not spared Serenity a glance he was so caught up in the stomach churning scenery around him. Now, as he looked at her, he realized why the people of Gaia called Cosmos the "Silver Being". Her silver hair hung free half way down her back with two white winged barrettes right above her bangs. Porcelain skin seemed to be having a competition with her white sailor suit to see which was the more pale. The skirt of the suit was a silvery white except for a pleat in the front which had nine different colored stripes, looking like they were radiating from a winged pendant with a gold eight pointed star that sat where her bodice ended and her skirt began. An identical pendant sat right above her bosom, the wings stretching out to her golden sleeves with white wings. Silvery white high heels adorned her feet, white wings connected to each heel. Instead of a golden moon upon her forehead, she had a golden eight pointed star shining upon her head, proof that she was in fact the scout of the stars. A silvery white chocker with a gold eight pointed star, and a long silvery white cape finished off the visage which was the entity known as Sailor Cosmos.

Zidane opened his mouth to speak, but found himself at a loss for words. He knew Serenity was pretty, but Cosmos was _beautiful_! She seemed to shine light upon the grey land they were currently on, making him briefly wonder if people on other planets could see her shine as well and mistook her for a star. '_Yeah right it's not __**that**__ bright_,' he mentally corrected himself before taking a deep breath and taking a step forward towards Cosmos. Why was he so nervous? She might look different, but this was still Serenity…wasn't it?

He glanced at her again, and noticed she was staring intently at something. Following her gaze, he nearly fell again. It was a planet! Composing himself, he studied the planet. It had seas of grey with brown and burnt black land masses. Not a single cloud blocked the planets surface from view, and even though he was so far away, he could tell the planet was dead.

Yet… something itched in the back of his mind. "It didn't always use to look like that…did it?" he asked.

Serenity shook her head, "That planet used to be one that I would sneak away to during the Moon Kingdom days, and the one I dedicated my life to protect during the Sailor Moon days." She closed her eyes and sighed, "Back then, the oceans were the most beautiful blue you could ever imagine. The land was not charred black, but many different colors, from the gold of desert sands to the browns of soil, to the red of lava, to the lush green of flora…" She opened her eyes sadly, "Earth was so beautiful then…Gaia reminds me of it…nature wise at least."

"Different civilizations?" Zidane asked curiously.

"Sorta… I could go into the whole history of Earth, technology, and political systems, but we're short on time, so we should find that machine," she replied, turning and starting to walk in a particular direction.

He looked at her confused, "We're short on time?"

She turned to him, "Well yeah, if we leave Kuja to fend off Freya and Amarant on his own, he'll kill us."

Zidane wasn't too concerned with Amarant, but the Burmecian knight was another story. He suddenly felt very sorry for his older brother, but in the same breath, was grateful he wasn't there at the moment to deal with it.

As the two walked along in silence, Zidane couldn't help but notice a few things about the land they were on. One thing was that he had yet to see any part of the landscape that was not a dull grey. Another was that the air was completely still. With a land so open, even with that hill they were currently working on getting to the other side of, he should have at least felt a little breeze but felt nothing, as if the air itself was dead. That brought up the third thing: there was no sign of life. No buildings, no trees, not even a weed had reared its ugly head. Where exactly were they…?

Once the two got over the hill, Zidane got his answer. He had to stop for a moment to process what he was seeing. Ruins lay everywhere, the only proof that there was once a civilization there. They were the same dull grey as the landscape, but Zidane had a feeling that that was just the color dulling over the years. The scene made his heart sink. He had seen the ruins of Madain Sari, and had seen Alexandria and Lindblum at their worst, but…this place had been obliterated! It reminded him of Cleyra, which had been ripped apart right before his eyes by Odin.

He followed Serenity down into the ruins, glancing around as he did. Was this what remained of the kingdom in his dreams…? If it was, then was his dream actually a memory of back then? He shook his head not wanting to believe it. All those people who suffered and on a day of celebration no less! They were all unprepared and so scared, if not for their own lives, then for those of their loved ones who were trying so desperately to drive away the darkness that was invading their home…And his past life lived through it.

"There it is." Serenity's voice made Zidane snap out of his thoughts and looked at the small machine in front of him. Actually, it looked more like a small disk imbedded in the ground. He knelt down and took a closer look, "This is it?" Serenity nodded. He studied the disk curiously from multiple angles, "How do you turn it on?"

Serenity studied it herself; there didn't look like there was a place to charge it or anything… "Well…."

Zidane knew that that meant. He looked up at the blond-er…silver haired girl incredulously, "You don't know?!"

"Hey, last time it turned itself on!" she said defensively, still looking for a place to charge the machine.

Zidane sighed. Leave it to Serenity to move them halfway across the universe to take a look at a machine…only to not know how to turn it on. He knocked on the disk playfully, "Hello? Anyone home?" He yelped in surprise as a little puff of grey dirt sprayed up at him from in front of the disk. He coughed for a second and waved his hand to move the offending particles away.

"You broke it didn't you?" Serenity smirked, hearing the noise and the cough while exploring the other ruins.

"I did not," he replied after finally getting the floating particles to clear. The blond genome inspected the area where the cloud came from. A small mount of the grey dirt had been moved up some when he knocked on the disk, but nothing else. He looked up to ask Serenity about it, but saw that she was off inspecting some other ruins, probably trying to figure out where the charger was. Turning back to the disk, curiosity got the better of him. Being as careful as possible since he didn't know what was down there and it was old so it might be fragile, Zidane began scooping away the loose dirt.

It didn't take very long for his gloved fingertips to brush something jutting out of the side of the disk (which was apparently much thicker than the thin disk he thought it to be). Zidane felt his excitement building like it did whenever he played Hot and Cold with Choco. Was this a secret compartment? He moved away the dirt a little quicker now that he knew where the object was. Sure enough there was a drawer of sort that had come ajar when he knocked on the disk. Moving away a bit more dirt in the surrounding area, Zidane pulled open the drawer. Fitting perfectly inside was a white box with golden engravings. In the center was an insignia. It looked like a circle with a dot in the center. The dot was in the center of a six pointed star that was about a quarter of the size of the circle. "What is this…?" he wondered aloud, getting Serenity's attention.

"What'd you find?" she asked, noticing the box in his hand.

Zidane studied the insignia again; it looked familiar, "I don't know…do you recognize this sign?"

Serenity looked at the sign as well and narrowed her eyes slightly as she studied it, "It looks like the sign of the sun…but there's no star in it…" The blond genome glanced at the silver haired scout and she nodded to his silent question. Carefully, he opened the box.

They both blinked in surprise. Inside the box was a white satin pillow, and on top of the pillow, a crystal golden in color. Serenity looked at the gem curiously. It was the same color as the Golden Crystal, but looked much different. It had six points, with the two horizontal and the two vertical points being longer than the diagonal ones. Each point was wavy, making the gem almost resemble a sun. Serenity narrowed her eyes; she recognized the basic design.

Zidane looked at the gem, mesmerized by it. He knew this gem…he didn't know how, but he knew he had seen it before somewhere. "What is this…?" he wondered aloud.

"I'm not sure…but it almost looks like a heart crystal," Serenity replied, kneeling down next to her blond companion.

A heart crystal? Zidane had never heard of such a thing before, yet something in the back of his mind told him she was right.

"It's strange though…" Serenity pulled out the Silver Crystal, "It's faint, but I can sense a similar power coming from that gem as I can from my own crystal."

The blond was only half listening. He had noticed that there was a chain connected to the gem and had lifted it out of the box by it. The gem slowly spun back and forth, gaining a little momentum from when Zidane pulled it out of the box. As he stared at it, he couldn't help but notice that the mysterious gem seemed to flicker and glow, as if a small flame was lit within it. His mind began to get hazy as the voice in the back of his mind started pushing its way to the front of it. With his free hand, he slowly began to reach forward. Although his better judgment would have been to just keep the gem in the box, it was ignored as he found himself reaching to touch the gem itself with his free hand.

Serenity noticed this. "Zidane be careful-" She wasn't able to finish before his fingertips brushed the gem's surface. "Zidane!" she shouted, as a brilliant golden light flashed from the gem.

Out of reflex, the silver haired scout moved one arm to cover her eyes and gasped. The hand she had moved was the one with the silver crystal in it, and it was releasing a silver light as well! 'W-What's going on?!' she wondered, shutting her eyes tight to keep from being blinded.

When Serenity opened her eyes, she gasped. The first thing she noticed was that she was no longer a silver scout of the stars, but the golden haired moon princess once again. The next thing she noticed was that Zidane was checking himself out. The reason for this was that the young thief…didn't exactly look like a thief anymore. He was wearing the same white armor with the blue designs that Erymanthus always wore in her dreams. During the flash, the golden gem managed to somehow get around his neck, and was now hanging loosely over his chest. He was currently looking behind his white cape, running in circles. After a few seconds of watching, the moon princess finally realized he was wondering where his tail had gone.

"Zidane, it doesn't matter how many times you do that, your tail's not gonna appear," she stated with a smirk.

The blond genome sent a glare her way, but stopped in surprise when he saw her. "Whoa! Exactly how many times are you gonna transform on me?" he asked in disbelief. "And…how many times am I gonna transform on myself?" he asked, looking down at his attire again.

She shrugged, "Beats me, I never plan to take my princess form."

Zidane sighed and scratched the back of this head, "What happened anyway?"

"You don't remember?" Serenity blinked. The blond prince shook his head. "You touched that gem," she sighed, pointing to the golden object hanging around his neck. "It reacted to you, the Silver Crystal reacted to it, and now we're here."

"Speaking of which…where's 'here'?" he asked, looking around the new surroundings.

Serenity hadn't taken in her surroundings yet; she was more focused on the blond genome and the attire changes. However, she already knew exactly where they were. "We're in the only place the Silver Crystal would take us if we needed answers…" She looked out across a shimmering lake to a sparkling kingdom, the castle having a crescent moon at its highest point, "We've been sent to a world in the afterlife; where my mother and the Moon Kingdom now reside."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time


	31. Chapter 31

Kuja: Hello readers

Kuja: Hello readers. I suppose I'm doing the disclaimer today since ZT is…(glances at ZT who is jumping around in an attempt to get the cookie Oirasse hung in front of her face) well she's a little tied up at the moment. Anyway, this chapter is basically a stroll down moon kingdom memory lane for Zidane and Serenity. Why _**I**_ was not invited…(Glares at the oblivious ZT) I have no idea, but hopefully the cookie monster there has a good reason for it. ZT doesn't own Sailor Moon or FF9.

ZT: Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 30

Zidane took a few steps back when he took in the shimmering kingdom. This was the place he saw in his dreams? The place he and Serenity were just standing in a few moments ago that looked like nothing but grey ruins? He shook his head. No, he didn't want to believe it! Who could be so cruel as to attack this place in that manner? It was so beautiful, calm, and filled with...Serenity.

He let his eyes leave the structures, and rest on the woman next to it whom they called Princess. He blinked in surprise. The young genome turned prince had expected his partner to be sad, to look at the kingdom and yearn for what once was. After all, Dagger had been that way after Bahamut attacked. However, Serenity was not the princess of Alexandria, and she had more than enough time to get over yearning what might have been. She was instead scanning the area with the sharp eyes of a hunter/seasoned warrior. '_That's right; it's been thousands of years since the Moon Kingdom was wiped out, she's over it…'_ Zidane thought. But still, he thought, she wouldn't be searching the grounds like that unless she knew something was there…what did she know that he didn't?

"Uh…Seren? If you're looking for a bathroom I think you're gonna have to use a bush," he attempted to get her attention.

It worked. Serenity glanced at him and smirked, "What era do you think this is? A lady like myself using a bush?? There are Chamber pots in the palace."

"That was a bit too much information…" Zidane rubbed the back of his head and laughed, "But what were you looking for?"

"My mother." Zidane looked at her confused. "I've been sent here multiple times. Nearly every time I do, I meet up with my mother," she explained, starting to walk towards a path that crossed the water to the palace.

"'Nearly'? Who do you meet the other times?" he asked.

"Erymanthus," she replied, smirking slightly when she heard Zidane stumble slightly at the mention of his incarnate's name.

The walk across the water didn't take long at all and soon the two found themselves in front of the palace. Serenity let a small frown form on her lips as she looked at the silvery palace. Usually people were right there to meet her when she came to this world, yet they had seen no one yet…

"So where's the welcoming committee?" Zidane asked, voicing the question in her mind.

She shook her head, "I don't know…usually mother shows herself by now."

The prince sighed and sat on the step, "You know, these guys should just write books on our lives and give 'em to us…Garland basically came and said hi, then made me chase Mikoto around Bran Bal, then finally gave me the speech of who I was and my purpose in life as he made me follow him over the tops of enormous artificial mushroom!"

Serenity laughed, "You think that's bad? I was originally told it was my mission to _find_ the moon princess and protect her, not that _I_ was the Moon Princess!"

Zidane raised an eyebrow, "So basically, you needed to risk your life to protect a princess, who was you?" The princess nodded and he shook his head, "Makes perfect sense."

"Tell me about it," she grinned, sitting next to him.

"So now what? Do we wait?" he asked.

"I don't see anything else we can do other than that…" she replied, resting her chin in the palms of her hands. Zidane sighed; he had a feeling this was going to take awhile…

No sooner had the thought passed his mind, he saw Serenity sit upright. "Did you hear something?" He shook his head, and after a few moments, she settled back into her old position.

They both sat there in silence for a few moments before the princess again was startled by something. This time, Zidane heard it as well and stood up. "Was that…a trumpet?"

Serenity stood up as well, "You heard it too?"

Zidane nodded, his body tensing slightly. Where had that noise come from? He took a few steps forward, leaving Serenity on the steps as he scanned the area for the source of the noise.

"Trumpets traditionally signal the arrival of someone of great importance on the moon kingdom…I don't recognize that particular tune though…" Serenity thought out loud.

"Yeah it's the same on Gaia," Zidane replied. He frowned slightly; that tune was familiar, but how he knew it, he had no idea… He absentmindedly began to play around with the gem around his neck as he wracked his brain for any clue to where he might have heard it. The orchestra in Tantalus? No, he knew all of their music by heart. Maybe in one of Gaia's towns? Nope, none of the Gaian royals had trumpets that sounded like that, and if it was a fake royal from a performance, he again would have known it pretty quick. He sighed and closed his eyes; he had to have heard it _somewhere_! An image came to mind almost instantly after his eyes closed, and he found himself having to open his eyes to try to ease the intensity of the image with the moon's serene scenery.

Serenity noticed the boy stiffen slightly and took a step forward, "What is it?"

"I…I think I know what that trumpets sounding for," he answered, making the Moon Princess stop short. He turned to face her, "It's sounding the arrival of a member of the Solar royal family...me."

"The Solar Royal family…I never told you their correct title, did I?" she wondered aloud, again resuming her walk over to him.

He shook his head, "No, it just came to me." He let his eyes drift towards the sky. The Earth was there, but looking much different than the dead rock he saw from the ruined moon. Serenity was right; it was beautiful. Blues, browns, whites, greens, he knew this was the way the planet was supposed to look. As Zidane looked at the giant marble, mesmerized by its beauty, he slowly began to realize something, something that made his eyes widen in shock. "Serenity…" he breathed, making the princess stop again and gaze at him confused. He looked at her, the surprise still etched on his face, but she could also see in his eyes that whatever had surprised him, was something he knew that donned on him, "This is where we first met."

The princess's eyes widened as well as the memory came to her. "That's right!" She closed her eyes as the memory became more vivid, and smiled, "We were around five years old at the time. It was your first time away from the Solar Kingdom, here to visit your aunt Artemis who was not only a noble, but had she not sworn eternal chastity thus unable to give birth to an heir, might have been Queen of the Moon herself. You had snuck off when the formal greetings between your father and my mother took place and found this very spot." Serenity laughed slightly, "When I first saw you, you were staring up at the Earth with the same mesmerized look that you had just now."

Zidane nodded, "In the Solar kingdom, everything reflected the golden reds and yellows of the sun, I had been told that the Moon Kingdom was covered in a silvery radiance so I was prepared for that, but I was not expecting to see a planet that looked like Earth did. You had approached me during that time, and even though I had felt a little embarrassed that you caught me so entranced in a planet like that, you had just laughed and said you did the same thing everyday. That hit off our friendship right then and there, which pleased our parents considerably."

Serenity smirked, "Of course, we didn't know then why they were so pleased. The 'visiting your Aunt Artemis' was only partially true; our parents wanted to see how well we got along…and if we hit it off like we did, we were to be betrothed…which we were." At that, the two began to laugh.

"That idea went out the window pretty quick," the prince breathed between laughs.

Serenity continued laughing as well, "Yeah, we were a terrible duo growing up! Always causing mischief and mayhem wherever we went; I lost count of how many times we got chased out of the kitchen by the cooks for stealing treats when they were making dinner!"

Once they got control of their laughter, Zidane let out a small sigh, "Both of our parents wanted us to be happy, but I'm not sure if it was because of that, or the fact that they worried for our kingdoms' futures if two nutty kids ruled that they broke the engagement…After all, it was shortly after our families formally met the Royal Earth family that they broke it off."

She nodded, her eyes lowering to the ground as she continued where he left off, "And that begins the reason why my memories were altered about the time…there was no war at the time when we first met Endymon. In fact, the first time I met him he was getting a tour around the Moon Kingdom." She closed her eyes and sighed, "Mother must have seen the look in my eyes when I gazed that way, but thought I was staring at the Earth Prince…and not the one showing him around."

"Panagiotis," Zidane voiced the name Serenity had left unsaid.

"You were one of the only people who knew how I felt towards him, and he towards me. Endymon figured it out pretty quick though, and was perfectly fine with keeping our little secret…We never thought that mother would betroth Endymon and myself however…" the princess sighed.

"My dad was the god of prophesy, so he knew before hand that you were in love with another child of the Moon. But he had no right to get involved in the Royal Moon family's affairs since I was no longer betrothed to you. Had he done so and offended your mother, our kingdoms could have gone to war."

Serenity smiled, "But that didn't stop you and Endymon. Endymon knew that breaking the engagement off would have been fine with my mother, but his parents had been acting strangely lately, and any proposal to break off the engagement fell on deaf ears. The two of you concocted a plan which included Panagiotis and I running away, far outside of the galaxy and eloping. We were to stay hidden for awhile until the royal Earth family came to the realization that the Princess of Mars was a much more suitable bride for their son than I, then I would return after you and your aunt had explained the situation to my mother, hopefully with the help of your other aunt Aphrodite since she's somewhat of an expert in the field of love."

"Yeah…it didn't work out that way though," Zidane sighed. "The two of you were supposed to sneak off on the Anniversary of the Moon Kingdom, right when everyone else was leaving so that you would not be missed in the confusion…We had no idea that the reason Endymon's parents were acting strangely was because they were being possessed by the Negaverse." He looked up at the blue marble again, "Earth attacked us that night along with the Negaverse army. It was so sudden and we were unprepared thanks to the festivities…we didn't stand a chance."

"Yes we did." Zidane tuned his attention to the princess as she looked up at the Earth as well. Her eyes were hardened again, and he knew she was talking with the fighting experience as a sailor scout. "The sun and the moon are opposites that balance each other, much like the day and the night." She looked at him, "As Erymanthus, you were not only a prince, but a member of my court whose duty was to protect me; you were trained how to properly use your powers. As Sailor Moon, I was a rookie when I stood my ground against the Negaverse and won. Had you been given the chance to fight, the Moon Kingdom would not have fallen."

"Perhaps…but I wasn't given that chance," his eyes narrowed as he remembered the dream, one that he knew for certain now was a memory of that invasion, "Beryl came after you, and killed Endymon in the process. Panagiotis and I went looking for you and came just in time to witness the Earth prince's death. We drove Beryl back, but once we did…of all people it was a fellow_ scout_ that struck me down!"

"No, not a scout, but a scout possessed by a greater force," he looked at her just as she turned to look at the palace again, her hands balled into fists and the tone in her voice cold, "That bastard knew even then that Cosmos was going to be a child of the moon, so he used his prized puppet to help in destroying the kingdom, taking down our strongest warrior, and a few moments later…our high priest."

The prince's eyes widened, "So she got to Panagiotis too?!"

Serenity nodded, "We barely got down the stairs before she caught up with us, taking him down as well." She snorted slightly, "Well, at least mother kept that part of my memories accurate; I killed myself right after I watched my love die. Although…I think I know why she did it now…"

"She didn't think we were coming back," Zidane finished for her.

The princess nodded, "After she killed the two of you, Galaxia took your star seeds. If mother witnessed that, and heard the fuss that I made, she would have known that you would not be reborn with the rest of us, and if I remembered everything as it were, I would never truly be happy…"

He looked at her confused, "What fuss did you make?"

She looked at him and smiled slightly, "I believe I said something along the lines of 'I can live without my kingdom, I planned to anyways. But I refuse to live without Panagiotis and you'."

Zidane let out a half laugh, "You always were a stubborn one…"

"I just want to be with my loved ones…" she smiled. Her smile faded shortly after though and she crossed her arms in thought, letting her eyes gaze at the stars, "It's strange…back when I was remembering with the scouts, we came here before, and I have come here multiple times by myself…yet never did my memories come back this clearly, even when I had come across your past self's spirit. Why did it suddenly come back now."

"I can answer that one," she gazed at the prince as he pointed to the gem around his neck, "It's as you said, we are a balance of each other. Before I left from the Sun to the Moon for the final time, my father suddenly demanded I give him the family jewel, which I have always worn around my neck like this."

"I was wondering why you didn't have it that day…you were actually dressed in a white outfit with _gold_ trimming that day, it would have matched your outfit for once," she remarked with a smirk.

"Yes thank you for noticing fashion police…Anyway, this gem is much like the Silver Crystal. Translation, it's powerful," he said.

"The silver crystal is also the star seed of Cosmos, not just a powerful relic," she pointed out.

"I know…yet what does this remind you of?" he asked, holding it up to eye level so she could get a better look.

The princess narrowed her eyes, "Well, even though its shaped more to look like a sun, the general design reminds me of a heart crystal. But all heart crystals look the same except for…" her eyes widened and Zidane nodded in confirmation to what she was about to say. "It's a heart talisman??" she exclaimed in shock.

"Yeah, dad kept it hush hush when we learned about it; it was an ace up our sleeves that only the Moon queen and my family knew the solar system had. Dad must have had a premonition about my death and reincarnation, and had the queen hide it away in a place that _you _would go to should we have met and searched for answers."

"So I had to bring you here if I wanted to remember the real past, because it reacts to you like the silver crystal does to me."

Zidane nodded in confirmation, "It was a smart idea; since we both had to be here, it awakened both our memories, and now I have the Heart of the Sun back as well." He paused when he saw the look on her face at the name of the talisman. He held his hands up in defense, "Hey I didn't name it!" She didn't look convinced but he continued, "Anyway, aside from that, my being here ensures that you found at least one of those people you 'couldn't live without', so you won't have one of your crazy ideas to go out looking for us now."

"That was actually a smart move…" Serenity mused. She blinked, "Hey what do you mean 'one of my crazy ideas'?! You were a little off your rocker too ya know!"

"I don't deny that, but the _real_ crazy stuff came out of that little blond head of yours," he replied, tapping her forehead lightly.

She batted his finger away, "Oh yeah? Whose plan was it to have a princess and a high priest run away and elope?"

"Well…"

"And whose brilliant idea was it to set off fireworks in the ballroom?"

"I'm from the sun, everyone from there's a pyromaniac to _some_ degree…"

"And who told the cooks that there was going to be a wedding so that they would make a huge cake?"

"That was your idea!"

"Oh yeah…well who was the nut who had a Moon scout and former evil villain go through a ceremony in a village full of dwarves?"

"That was present day…"

"So? You're still the diabolical mastermind behind it," she replied, pointing accusingly at him.

He rubbed the back of his head, "Eh heh, I guess I am pretty nuts…"

She smirked, "Well…I guess we better get back to the others, no telling what messes they got into while we were gone…"

"True," Zidane replied, then said quickly, "But I'm driving!"

"Do you know he way to Gaia from here?" she asked skeptically.

He grinned, "Of course." The Heart of the Sun glowed for a moment with a golden light, and the two were gone.

* * *

Starting in the wrong direction, five wrong turns, and Serenity taking charge of the navigation later, the two finally made back to Gaia. "I thought you said you knew the way to Gaia!" Serenity sighed in exasperation as the two made their way across the snow covered fields to Esto Gaza. She was back in her bandit attire, as was Zidane after she showed him a trick with the talisman to switch between his bandit and prince form with ease. The said genome was currently hugging his tail for dear life, and Serenity swore she heard him whispering to it at one point.

He looked up at her, "So I wanted to see the scenic route, no harm no foul."

Serenity shook her head and looked on ahead. She could see what she presumed was Esto Gaza in the distance, and started picking up the pace. Zidane let go of his tail and followed suite.

As they got closer, Zidane decided to speak up, "Hey Seren, does anything feel…off? to you?"

She stopped and faced him, "You felt it too?" The two stared at each other for a moment before sprinting towards their destination.

"I had this feeling before in a weaker dose but wrote it off," Zidane said between breaths, "Is it what I think it is?"

Serenity nodded, "Yeah, that's the energy signature of Kisenian Blossoms… a lot of em."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


	32. Chapter 32

ZT: (munching on a cookie) Hi everyone

ZT: (munching on a cookie) Hi everyone! Sorry I had to make Kuja give the disclaimer last time…I have a weak spot for cookies.

Kuja: Didn't Oirasse offer you a whole jar of cookies this time?

ZT: Yep she did (Smiles happily) Thank you baby gurl!

Kuja: Then why aren't you running after them now?

ZT: (Jabs a thumb behind her.) That's why.

Kuja: (Looks where she's pointing and sees Zidane chasing after the cookie jar) …Are we SURE he's my brother?

ZT: (shrugs) I dunno the DNA results haven't come in yet.

Kuja: Ah

ZT: Anyway, on to the story. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9.

Kuja: (quickly in a perky tone) Enjoy! (Smirks at the glare ZT gives him)

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 31

"Dagger! Eiko! Everyone! Where are you guys?!" Zidane shouted as he and Serenity raced up the steps to the entrance of Esto Gaza.

They stopped short at the sight they saw. Vines were coiling up the pillars, and wrapping in a manner that completely blocked the entrance. Standing in front of the vines were three blossom minions, each feeding more power to green barricade. Or at least they were; Zidane's shouts had successfully caught their attention.

Serenity glanced at him, "Want two or one?"

"How about you round them up and I burn em all along with anything else that's green around here?" he replied with a smirk.

"Going pyro on me already?" she raised an eyebrow, but unsheathed Destiny's Wrath as she did.

Zidane began to glow, "Nah, just gonna trance."

Remembering the display Zidane had shown at Oeilvert, the moon scout took no time in aggravating the three by slashing and dodging, making them follow her towards the entrance with ease. Once she was there, she smirked, concentrating on the power of her dear scout of Mercury. "Shine Aqua Illusion!" With a splash of swirling blue energy and freezing cold water, the three froze in place instantly.

Wasting no time, she moved to a safer area as Zidane became the glowing pink man again. He concentrated, "Tidal Flame!" The fiery attack incinerated the three monsters along with the vines, allowing the two to enter.

As Zidane's trance died down, Serenity flew towards the doors, throwing them open. "Get down!" The scout reaction was instantaneous. She crouched low and heard the slight thud as Zidane dove to the ground as another Kisenian minion flew over their heads, having been struck by a powerful holy attack.

"Zidane! Are you alright? What took you so long? It's _her_ fault you're late isn't it?" Eiko's rambling and accusations made the scout's eye twitch and she turned to Zidane with a slight huff. As she did she noticed something. She made a subtle gesture, signaling for Zidane to quickly check his shirt before Eiko saw. Glancing down, he realized that the Heart of the Sun was still hanging around his neck, and shoved it in his shirt just before the summoner ran around the female bandit towards him.

He scratched the back of his head, "Eh sorry…we went exploring and got a little lost. When'd those things get here? And how many are in here?"

"We don't know…" Vivi's quiet voice caught their attention. The little black mage came towards the entrance, the Mace of Zeus in hand. "They are coming from Mount Gulug, but I we haven't been able to make our way in there yet…"

"Where are the others?" Zidane questioned, getting to his feet and making his way to the entrance.

"They're making their way to Mount Gulug; we were in charge of looking for you two and helping and civilians get away," Eiko answered.

Serenity looked at the creatures Eiko shot before they turned to dust. Rather than the spider legs that the other minions had, these had serpent-like tails. She remembered these guys; they could be wiped out easily on their own, but they always came in vast quantities. What's more, they had an ability to merge into one powerful attack force that buried the enemy…if the others were facing a number of these creatures, they were in more danger than they knew. Narrowing her eyes, the scout of the stars concentrated, dismissing her daggers and summoning a wand to hand.

"What's that?" Zidane asked curiously.

"The Eternal Moon Scepter. We're gonna need some serious firepower if there are many more of these things," she replied, the golden crescent moon insignia appearing on her forehead.

Zidane nodded and the four took off into Esto Gaza. They ran through the entrance, blasting away the monsters that crossed their paths with black and white magic, thief skills, and a moon scouts power.

As they reached the terrace, Serenity motioned for the other three to stop. Her eyes narrowed; the entire place was blanketed in pink flowers, each one she was well aware of held another Kisenian minion. There was one small problem though…all the flowers looked the same, and she wasn't sure if these were the snakes minions like the ones Eiko and Vivi were attacking…or if they were the spider ones that would require more firepower.

Zidane's eyes narrowed at the sight before them and glanced at Serenity, "Each one of those is a monster, isn't it?" She didn't answer, but the look in her eyes, told him that it was a yes. He frowned; it would be best to take out the lot of them with one massive attack, but he didn't have any like that unless he was in trance…or he could use some of his tricks from Erymanthus's days. The answer to that he already knew was a big fat no; so far as he knew, only Serenity and himself were aware of the fact that he was the prince of the sun, that was a good ace to keep up their sleeve for now… He turned to Eiko and Vivi, the little summoner recognizing the flowers from before and the little black mage getting the idea of what they were from how the others were reacting. "Have you two taken much damage?" he asked.

"A little, but we have Pumice Pieces," Eiko replied with a smirk, catching onto what the genome was getting at.

Zidane nodded and tossed Serenity an armlet. "What's this?" she asked, confused. It was supposed to act as armor, she knew that much, but it seemed fairly weaker than the things they usually wore. Although, she could feel something coming from it…

"It's and Egoist's Armlet, put it on quick," he replied, slipping one on himself.

Serenity wasn't sure what this was about, but complied, slipping it onto her right arm. As soon as she did, Vivi took a few steps forward until she was in front of her. He closed his eyes and concentrated, waving his staff in a circular fashion. Power began to flow around the staff in the same circular motion that the staff was making, like the little mage was stirring it. He released the power as a spell with a single word: "Doomsday" A meteorite fell from the sky, smashing into the flowers and making them explode in a spectacular inferno of dark power. Serenity gasped as the power flooded towards their group as well and shielded her face with her arm. To the scout's surprise, no pain ever came. The armlet glowed a smoky grey color as it protected her from all the dark power. Glancing over at Zidane, she saw that he was protected by his armlet as well. The two children, she noticed, seemed to get an energy kick from the spell, and looked like they were ready to conquer the world as if they had just gotten a full nights rest. She wasn't _quite_ sure what happened, but considering the looks of triumph on her Gaian friends' faces, she supposed it did what it was supposed to and took off for the other end of the terrace.

As soon as the group entered the mountain, they were greeted by the sounds of spells, weapons slicing through things, and then a deafening roar which drowned it all out. Freya was jumping every which way possible, aiming her spear towards the areas where she could take out the most minions with a single blow. Amarant was launching wing edges and rising suns this way, slicing through the snakelike blossoms with ease. Steiner was alternating between Climhazzard and Shock as he blasted and sliced through the creatures, his armor shielding him from the enemy attacks for the most part. Dagger was standing further in the back, playing medic for the team as well as unleashing Eidolons upon the countless number of flowers that seemed to be pooling out of every nook and cranny there was. Currently, Bahamut was clearing out a path of the blossoms with a powerful Mega Flare. Kuja was putting his abilities as a red mage to good use, casting flare stars at groups of monsters while aiding the Alexandrian queen in healing when she looked like she had her hands full. Considering the fact that Amarant and Freya weren't trying to rip Kuja's head off, and seemed ok with the facts that their backs were turned to him, Zidane and Serenity figured the others must have already filled the two in on current events.

Serenity was about to jump into the battle when something caught her eye. She turned sharply, "Steiner watch out!" The knight was startled by the scouts voice, having not known she and the other three had arrived yet, but was able to knock the red dragon who had decided to join the fight out of the way thanks to her warning.

"I am not usually in a habit of thanking thieves…" he said, and the scout smirked. "You guys focus on the mist monsters; they're _your_ area of expertise," she said, moving her scepter as she powered it up. At first the group wondered what she meant, that is until they saw that mist monsters were making their way towards them from the path Bahamut had just cleared.

"Can you take out that many on your own?" Kuja asked, glancing at the blond incredulously.

To his surprise, she smirked, "There won't be that many for long." She aimed her staff at the group of blossoms heading in their direction. "Moon! Princess! Halation!" A beam of pink sparkles mixed with golden crescent moons erupted from the end, obliterating any of the blossoms in its path. She frowned and gripped the wand with both hands, stirring the path to hit more of the blossoms on their level. Something wasn't right; her moon powers were acting up again! 'Damn! What is with this planet? I didn't feel any problems when I was on the Moon Kingdom,' she mentally cursed, adding some star power into the mixture. She mentally sighed in relief when she noted that her cosmic powers were still unaffected by…whatever it was, and started aiming towards the blossoms trying to come up from lower levels.

From his spot killing a red dragon, Zidane let his attention focus slightly on the scout. Maybe he was just still getting used to his old abilities again, but he could have sworn he saw something around the scepter the moment she casted the spell. A moment later something had flashed in her eyes which made him think something didn't go quite as planned as she pumped some star power into the attack. 'She did mention that her powers were acting weird…' he thought, narrowing his eyes. He struck the monster once more before it turned back into mist. "Seren, do you have a more powerful attack?" he asked in his moment of rest.

"Yeah but it takes more power to use," she replied, raising an eyebrow slightly at the question.

"There's a ton of guys down there; you _need_ more firepower," he said before turning his attention towards another dragon. If he had seen something, a spell with a little more punch might make it more visible to him.

Serenity wasn't sure what Zidane was up to, but had caught onto the fact that he wanted her to use one of her more powerful moon attacks. She stood at the edge of the plank bridge she was currently standing on and look down into the pit far below. All of the blossoms were retreating back, which meant that they were going to pull the same stunt they had with the Inners and herself before. Good. She glanced at the others while the creature took its time to gather into one force. They all were preoccupied with the mist monsters, but one glance at Zidane told her the genome was paying attention to her as well. 'Hopefully you find out what you want the first time; I'm not giving this thing a second shot at me,' she thought as the blossoms rose like a tidal wave from the bottom of the extinct volcano. "Silver Moon! Crystal Power! Kiss!" she released her strongest Moon attack. Golden light shot out of the scepter, slicing through the rest of the blossoms like a golden lightning bolt before exploding into a flurry of feathers. Again, she noted that the attack didn't feel nearly as strong as it did before. However, for blossoms that could be mowed down by the Princess Halation, it was more than enough to blast them away. She noted as well that her attack was enough to frighten away the rest of the mist monsters. 'I suppose they have some thought process after all…' she mused, inwardly smirking.

"A…Amazing," Freya managed to say when she saw Serenity's single spell take out the remainder of the blossoms. As the two had suspected, Amarant and Freya had been filled in during their absence. When Eiko, Kuja, and Dagger realized that some monsters the knight and mercenary had been dealing with were in fact Kisenian Blossoms, they decided to fill the two in about Sailor Moon as well so that it would be less confusing when the moon scout started blasting creatures left and right.

"Those didn't seem as strong as the one we fought in Madain Sari…" Kuja commented, thinking back to the spider woman who took one sailor scout, two summoners, a thief, and a red mage to take down.

The scout shook her head, "They're not; the ones with the spider legs are much more powerful. The serpent tailed ones go for quantity instead of quality."

Zidane stretched and walked over to where the other bandit stood, looking over the edge, "Think you got em all?"

She shrugged, "Wouldn't hurt to look…"

"Alright," he turned to the others, "You guys go on and head back to the ship. Seren and I will catch up after we do a quick search of this place."

"Oh, well um…why don't we come along?" Dagger suggested.

Kuja nodded to the suggestion, "It would be safer in greater numbers."

"Nah, did you see the spell this girl just lashed out at them? If we run into anything we can handle it." Each member of the group looked like they were about to open their mouths to protest but the thief cut them off, "Besides, we kinda came into this battle late; think of this as an apology for making you guys deal with those creeps without us at first."

"Zidane, I really must protest to this…" Freya put in. She knew that Zidane and Serenity could handle whatever was down there, but still…something seemed off.

Eiko sighed in frustration, "What's with you two?! Ever since _she _showed up you act like you're more her friend than ours! Are you two hiding something from us?! Or do you just prefer to go on adventures with her?!"

For once, the thief didn't know what to say to the little summoner. Was he really spending more time with the female bandit than the others? He hadn't intended to...but he guessed between having to be alone with her to learn the bits and pieces about Cosmos, to going off with her to learn about his past life, and now to search for any stray blossoms, it did seem that way. "Eiko, I never meant to-"

"Zidane, you go ahead on back." He looked at Serenity in surprise when she spoke. He couldn't place it, but there was something different in her eyes when she spoke, "I can handle any youma or Kisenians down there; and I have the sailor teleport if I run into trouble. But you never really did get much shut eye after the air ship attack last night. Go get some rest with the others."

Everyone shared glances with each other. Each person knew it was a reaction to Eiko's outburst, but usually she just made a sarcastic remark and went on her merry way. This time she seemed to take it pretty hard.

Eiko was not oblivious to this and felt guilty for it. "Oh, no it's ok. You shouldn't go down in there alone and it's pretty dumb for all of us to go; Zidane would be the best person to go with."

The older girl shook her head, "As Sailor Moon, I can fly through here real quick. I'd be done in less than half if I went solo."

"But-"

"I'm fine. Now head on back to the ship before I teleport you all back there," she said with a half laugh, but the look in her eyes saying she was dead serious about the teleportation part. The group hesitated for a moment more before finally complying, making their way towards the exit.

Zidane was the last to leave. "Serenity…" he started, but she stopped him.

"Zidane, go get some rest. We both know you're tired from today's happenings," she pressed.

Knowing he wasn't going to get anywhere with the stubborn girl, he nodded. "Fine, but before I go, I wanted to tell you I noticed something." She looked at him confused and he continued, "When you used your scepter, I could see a red and black aura surrounding it. I guess since you're focusing on the spell you didn't notice; but it looked like it was suppressing the power of your spell."

The moon scout's eyes widened slightly, and she nodded, "Thanks, I hadn't noticed…" She watched him turn around and leave before going and searching for any remaining blossoms.

* * *

Once outside, Zidane couldn't help but sigh. He knew why she reacted the way she did to Eiko's outburst. Back on the moon kingdom, Serenity and the court had their own lives and friends at first. But…as time progressed, their lives seemed to focus around each other and their duties, and they soon grew apart from others. No doubt something similar had happened when she was reborn as Sailor Moon, and she didn't want the same thing to happen to him…

"Zidane." The genome looked up in surprise, not realizing someone else was there. He found himself staring at his older brother, who was leaning against the railing of the terrace, nearest to where the remains of Shimmering Islands were. He looked at his brother with a cool expression, "Just because your comrades suggested you stay with Serenity in there does not mean that they are not still upset about the matter; you should not have been the last one out of there…"

The younger of the two rubbed the back of his head, "I know…but there was still something I needed to talk to her about."

The silver haired genome looked at him curiously, "Oh?"

"Yeah but I didn't get to say much to her; she's not in a talking mood at the moment," Zidane replied. He crossed his arms and studied his boots for a moment. Something about that aura around her scepter was sending chills down his spine. When he thought back on it, it was both terrifying yet fascinating at the same time. The words "fatal attraction" came to mind when he thought of it. It almost reminded him of…

He blinked in surprise. It reminded him of the red moon. He frowned slightly, his eyes revealing how deep in thought he was. But…why? Serenity gained her power from the moon; it wouldn't _suppress_ her power, would it? Perhaps it had to do with the black in the aura. But that still didn't explain where it came from in the first place. Plus of all people, this was _Serenity_! The legendary Moon Princess, scout of the Moon, Lady of the Stars, the only one who could stand up to the mighty Chaos! Who or what would have the power to suppress her strength?

Zidane was so lost in thought that he completely forgot that Kuja was sitting there. The older genome didn't disturb his thoughts however, having his own to dwell on. Although he too had sensed something when Serenity unleashed her attacks, it was the little summoner's words that plagued his mind more. What she said was true; the two _were_ very close. He would have just brushed it off as they had been thief partners for awhile now, thus they had more background in common, but he could tell even before Eiko suggested it that the two were hiding something. What it was, he hadn't been sure, but after this morning when he and the others awoke to see the two gone, and after Zidane's eagerness to get rid of everyone else just a moment ago, he was beginning to suspect it might be something he would dread when it finally came into light…

A sigh from his brother brought Kuja back to reality. "Well, I think I'm gonna take Seren's advice and get some sleep. You coming?" he asked.

The silver haired genome considered it for a moment before shaking his head, "Serenity shouldn't take long. I'll wait for her."

"Ok if you say so," Zidane stretched and headed towards the exit.

Once he was gone, the older genome sighed, looking out at the destroyed island behind him. He wasn't quite sure what had destroyed it in the first place…he had used it many times before Zidane had to get to Terra, yet never once did it fall apart. Garland had put the mechanism in place, maybe it was only meant to bring Garland's true angel back home…At that thought, Kuja let out another long sigh and closed his eyes. "Zidane…I dropped you on Gaia when you were merely a child. I did so not only because I feared you might replace me, but because I envied you. You were to -and already did- have more than I could ever dream of, everything I ever wanted." He opened his eyes again. Had anyone been looking at him at that moment, they would have seen unshed tears shining in the man's eyes, "Never in my life have I wished for something so badly…but is it already yours too keep?"

* * *

Deep inside Mount Gulug, Serenity sighed as she finished scouting the area for Kisenians. She knew there weren't any down there, but saying she needed to check gave her time to think. She spread her silvery wings, flying to a concealed ledge she had spotted earlier. Yes, silver wings. Since no one else was down there, the blond decided to take the form of Cosmos, having more experience flying with angel wing type rather than the pointy butterfly wing style. She leaned against the extinct volcano's wall and looked up. The top of it was completely closed off. A small frown crossed her lips; Kisenian Blossoms grew on whatever surface they landed on…considering however many hundred or thousands of flowers were in Gulug when she got there, it was fairly obvious that someone had planted them there. 'But who and why?' she wondered, trying to focus on any enemies that might be around who have that strength.

However, as much as she tried to focus on it, her mind kept focusing on other things. She soon found herself thinking back to her blond haired companion. He knew the truth now, not something she had planned, and he knew of his powers. But…she was worried. As soon as she became Sailor Moon, Molly, Melvin, and all her other friends took a back seat as she focused more on her scout duties. Would her being here cause the same problem for Zidane? Her eyes trained on the ground; she hoped not. He had some wonderful friends, and they were his comrades in arms long before she came along. But what if he did start doing what she had done before? Would she have the heart to leave him? He _was_ the only one of her court left alive aside from Panagiotis…

As the name crossed her mind, she focused on that little problem more. Serenity knew quite well that she would be lying if she said she didn't care for Kuja. Even though the others had trouble with him when they came across him for the first time, she hadn't been around to see his evil deeds, and thus didn't have the original ill-will towards him. To her, he was just a powerful mage with a past he wasn't proud of, not some villain who didn't deserve to live. And he had always been kind to her. He forced himself to learn the spell Life when she needed it badly, clothed her when her own attire was torn, he even held her close and comforted her when they were stuck out in the thunderstorm. 'He really is sweet…' she thought, smiling gently. 'But…' she let out a sigh and closed her eyes. She was worried. When Mamoru and she had met for the first time, he couldn't _stand_ Usagi! Not that she could blame him, she was a huge klutz, ditz, and crybaby at the time. But, as soon as he learned of their "past romance" he, to put it delicately, had forced himself to love her. Would Kuja be the same way if he learned about his past as Panagiotis? Her lover who was to elope with her? The silver haired scout shook her head. No, if Kuja found that he cared for Serenity, so be it. But if he found himself caring for her solely because he did in a former life, she wouldn't be able to bear it again…

She let her head rest against the wall, unconsciously playing with an object in her hands as she did. It wasn't until the object made a noise by tapping the hard ground that she realized what she was doing and looked at the item. It was her Eternal Moon scepter. She had forgotten that she kept it out. Zidane's comment about the red and black aura perplexed her. Had she come across this problem over five thousand years ago and seen that aura, she would have known exactly what was going on. But now…that explanation for all the happenings was impossible. After all, he was dead…wasn't he? She got to her feet, suddenly feeling a new burst of energy within her. Was it possible? No, she had seen it herself! But…still he _had_ gotten out of stickier situations…The scout of stars narrowed her eyes as the realization of who was behind everything hit her. There was only one thing to do to be sure…She closed her eyes and reached out with her senses. If her suspicions were true, this would let her know…

* * *

Kuja drummed his thumbs against the railing and glanced up at the sky. Serenity said that it wouldn't take very long for her to scout Mount Gulug, and even if she was stuck climbing down ropes and walking along planks, it shouldn't have taken that long… He didn't want to think about something happening to her, but if she was gone for that long, anyone was bound to start worrying. 'I better go search for her…' he thought, standing up and taking a few steps towards the entrance to Mount Gulug.

_You might as well wait where you are; she'll be out in a moment._

Kuja stopped dead in his tracks when he heard the telepathic voice, "Garland…"

* * *

Cosmos's eyes snapped open and she let out a gasp. It _**was**_ him! She let out a stream of curses before taking flight. He was close; _very _close!

_

* * *

_

What do you want Garland?

The silver haired genome's question came out in an irritated tone even through telepathy.

_What have I been asking you for?_ came the wizard's calm reply.

Kuja resisted the urge to roll his eyes, _I didn't have Cosmos last night, what makes you think now is any different?_

What Garland did next sent a cold chill down Kuja's spine. Never had he heard the old wizard do such a thing, and it terrified him more than any threat Garland could make. He laughed. A cold, maniacal laugh that was meant to be used at someone's expense. The genome didn't know that wizard had such a thing… _Kuja, you misunderstand. You are no longer the messenger…you are the bait._

Kuja's heart dropped to the pit of his stomach when he heard that. If he was "bait", it meant that he was going to be used to pull Cosmos out into the open. The only person who had a direct contact with Cosmos…was Serenity. He narrowed his eyes. "I refuse to be a part of your plans Garland!" he yelled out loud, not caring if anyone in the vicinity heard him.

_You don't have a choice._ In an instant, Kuja felt the same pain that wracked through his body the night before strike through him. He gasped and found himself holding onto the railing for support.

"_Kuja!!_" The sound of Serenity's voice filled him with dread. No, he didn't want her to see him like this, not now, not ever! He had worked so hard not to tell her about his life being in jeopardy if he failed to bring Cosmos to the wizard. Kuja tried to shout for her to leave, but before he could, darkness overcame him and he knew no more.

Cosmos gasped when she saw Kuja collapse on the stone floor. She rushed to his side, not caring at the moment if anyone saw her as the "silver being" or not at the moment. "Kuja can you hear me? Kuja?!" she attempted to wake him up, shaking his shoulder and rubbing his back.

After a moment, he began to stir much to her relief, and she backed off a little so that he could push himself up. With a sigh of relief, she focused her power to dismiss her Cosmos form before he saw it. "Why dismiss that form little princess? You look beautiful as the star maiden."

Serenity's blood ran cold when she heard the voice. That was _not_ Kuja's voice! The silver warrior got to her feet, staff in hand as she glared daggers at the man in front of her. "So you're the one they call Garland…"

Kuja looked up at her and she could have sworn her heart stopped for a moment. The person looked like Kuja, but inside, she knew he was anything but the silver haired genome she knew… Kuja's face usually had a cool expression on it, or he had a smirk on his face or was acting overly dramatic to get a reaction. This look was just…sinister. The sneer on his lips said he would thoroughly enjoy making the scout suffer, and the blood red eyes showed with a lust for blood and power.

She regained her composure before it even appeared she lost it. "Give. Him. Back. Now!" she ordered, her staff glowing threateningly at the one possessing her friend.

"Oh I shall…but first I want you to do a favor for me," Garland spoke through Kuja's lips. The scout was still glaring daggers but said nothing as he continued, "I'm sure you know where the Iifa tree is…be a dear and come visit me there." A silver light enveloped Kuja's body as it defied gravity, lifting up into the air, "If you come quick, you may see your friend again." With that, he was gone.

Cosmos stood there for a moment, processing what happened. Finally, she narrowed her eyes and dismissed her staff. She didn't know what the hell Garland wanted, but she had lost many friends due to her being Sailor Moon and Sailor Cosmos; she was _**not**_ going to lose Kuja as well. With a flap of her wings, she took to the sky. As she turned towards the Outer Continent, she let her gaze fall upon the Hilde Garde 4 in the distance. A lone tear slid down her cheek as she came to the realization that her journey with those heroes had ended. She closed her eyes and put a hand to her chest. She would never forget them; they were the only friends she had had in a long time. "Goodbye…" she whispered, knowing no one would hear. She opened her eyes and wiped away the tear, letting it fall into the ocean below. Her moment of sentiments was over; it was time for Cosmos to get back to work…

* * *

Back on the Hilda Garde 4, Zidane jolted up from his bed. Was that…a dream? A glow from within his shirt told him otherwise. He closed his eyes as his mind replayed what he had seen. Flashes of gold, red, black, and silver crossed his mind before he opened them again, getting out of bed, flying out of his cabin, and finding the others in a few seconds flat.

"Zidane? What is the matter?" Regent Cid asked in surprise, seeing the genome's disheveled look.

"I'll explain on the way," Zidane answered, "But we need to get to the Iifa tree, now!"

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


	33. Chapter 33

ZT: Hiya everyone

ZT: Hiya everyone! Well, as the last chapter might have hinted, we're getting close to the end of OSCAF.

Kuja: YES!! Now she can harass someone else!

ZT: -glares at Kuja- Anyway…I have a dilemma and I think need your help readers.

Kuja: -To the readers- Just say no!

ZT: Kuja shush! Well as I was saying, I need your help with something. See, I was considering doing a sequel to OSCAF but, well…

Kuja: She's never successfully completed a sequel to a story. Never one worth mentioning anyway…

ZT: Exactly. So, my question to the readers is this: Should I attempt a sequel, or just make another fanfic? And if I make a new fic, any requests on which series I should use? Let me know what you think in a review or email me (my email is on my profile) Ok so now that that's out of the way, -takes a swig of the soda Oirasse bribed her with- on with the show! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 32

Finely shaped silver eyebrows furrowed slightly as the owner of them started coming to his senses. Without opening his eyes, he already knew he was not in the same area as he was when he lost consciousness. It had been cold where he was. Although it was cool here, it was not cold enough for snow to be on the ground as it had been. Plus the air had been dry before. Now, the air was damp, reminding him of the air when mist still covered the planet. What had happened to him anyway? He remembered talking to that annoying wizard then a sharp pain throughout his body. The next few minutes were hazy, but he did remember right before he lost consciousness that his body started acting on its own accord. He could vaguely make out speaking to someone, a female he thought, who seemed to be made of silver…was that Cosmos he spoke to? He tried to clear the haze in his mind to make out the face of the silver warrior, but only succeeded in making his already aching head throb. Kuja let out of small groan at that and rubbed his temples.

Or at least he tried. The silver genome's eyes snapped open as he realized that his hands were bound tight above his head. Looking up, he realized that they were tied together by thick green vines which were wrapped securely around a…tree branch? He looked around. The area was blanketed in a white haze, and Kuja realized with dread that it was Mist. Branches and vines were slithering up, down, and around other large branches in the area. Looking down, he found was standing on what were perhaps hundreds or thousands of vines and dry branches wrapped tightly together to make what he could only describe as an enormous rope, about five feet in diameter. Below that was a seemingly endless chasm, swarming with the restless plants as well as some larger ones that chose to remain motionless. The genome realized with dread that he knew exactly where he was, and tried to pull free of his bonds but to no avail. "How did I get to the Iifa Tree?" he wondered aloud, annoyed that the vines would give way. He growled and focused his power around his wrists, preparing to burn through his bonds.

"I see you have awakened." Kuja looked up in surprise when he heard the new voice. Confusion filled his eyes a second later. The mist was thick, but still with how close the voice sounded, he still should have been able to see the person with the unfamiliar voice. Thinking he might have been off on where the voice came from, he scanned the whole area around him for any signs of the person, (who he was sure was a woman from the voice) but found nothing that seemed to be alive except for those branches and vines.

On that thought, he found himself even more confused. Last time he was here; the Iifa tree was dead; it had used up the last of its power to revive him. But now…the massive tree was thriving as if it had never even seen a wilted leaf! He hadn't been gone for very long…so what caused the change? Garland? No, in his state the old wizard could not do something this drastic in such a short time…

"Funny, Master Garland said you were more talkative than this," the voice brought Kuja out of his thoughts once again. He smirked, "Well it seems that I have been with others for so long, I've gotten used to sharing the spotlight. Now, would you please take you place on the stage and make your introduction? This Act cannot run its course if all the characters involved are not present."

"He said you loved to speak as if in a play…but very well." The silver haired genome glanced up again as one of the larger branches above him began to move. His eyes widened slightly as he realized the very tip of the branch was coming right towards him. Was he going to be impaled? The tree had did that last time when it went berserk, which is what finally did him in one year ago…needless to say, he was not looking forward to feeling that kind of pain again.

The silver haired genome mental breathed a sigh of relief when the branch stopped about a foot away from him. He looked at it curiously. At the very end was a small red flower, with the upper half of a woman's body sitting in the center. The woman had bluish grey skin and long pink hair that conveniently fell over her cleavage, effectively hiding it from view. The flower woman fit the description of a certain creature that Serenity had described to them. "So, you're the infamous Kisenian Blossom…Funny I never thought that Garland would make a puppet out of a pre-existing monster," he smirked.

"I am no one's puppet," the flower woman responded, "I give Master Garland's Iifa tree the power to collect souls and rejuvenate itself, and in return Master Garland has not only taught me how to create my lovely flowers through the Mist, but also guaranteed that I can avenge the death of one of my sisters, slaughtered when she was planting her garden by those horrid sailor scouts."

The silver haired genome frowned, "Oh? And what exactly makes you believe that Garland has the ability to lure one out into the open?"

The blossom chuckled, "I think you already know the answer to that…after all my flowers have already showed me that you are always in the company of that little moon brat."

Those words made the genome's blood run cold. "You stay away from her," he warned, eyes narrowing into dangerous slits. He knew that Garland wanted Cosmos, but now they were targeting Serenity as well? No, he would not let them harm a single golden hair on that woman's head!

"I really don't think you're in a situation that allows you to make demands of me," Kisenian replied to his warning, a smirk plastered on those tiny lips of hers.

"We'll see about that." Kuja had every intention to knock it right off that little blossom's face as well as her clean off that Iifa tree branch. The bonds around his wrists would have to wait; forcing the power up to his palms, he concentrated until a familiar sensation swirled in his palms, "FLARE!" Kuja felt the power release, but nothing happened. Blinking in surprise, he attempted to cast the spell again, but to no avail.

"It's no use," Kisenian's smirk never left her lips, "Those vines are absorbing your energy. Releasing that power is only making it easier for them to take it in."

"Absorbing my energy?" Kuja repeated, making sure he heard right. Last time one of the minions drained his energy, he felt the impact almost instantly. Why was it so weak that he didn't even notice it now?

The little flower nodded, "Master Garland said that if your life was in peril, the sailor scouts would put themselves in danger to save you. So…" the smirk on the blossom's face turned sinister, and Kuja found himself wondering how it was possible for something as delicate as a flower to be so evil, "I've been told to gradually drain your strength. You won't be able to escape without your magic, and when those scouts come to save you; we'll strike."

He scowled. The little flower was positive that the plan was full proof, he knew she felt that way because he used to rattle off his plans to Hilda when she was being held prisoner, always with the mindset that he was invincible. Of course, like it was for him one year ago, her undoing would be underestimating her opponents. Memories of his journey to Madain Sari with Serenity came to mind as with his foot, he had managed to free a dry branch from the makeshift rope he was standing on. It was somewhat brittle, but it should be enough to ruin one small flower.

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news…" Kuja chuckled darkly, "but seeing as I have been nothing but a villainous mastermind my whole life, I highly doubt I make decent bait!" With that last bit, he kicked the branch up, the sharper end of it shooting up at the Kisenian blossom.

The little blossom yelped in surprise; he was a spell caster! How did he manage to make a little tree branch a weapon with only his foot?! She shifted the massive plant she was on, the branch missing her for the most part, but still managing to rip off one of her beautiful red petals. Now it was her turn to scowl, "If you aren't going to be good bait while being held captive, then maybe you'll be better bait when I am controlling your mind." She began releasing her roots from the Iifa tree, with every intention of connecting to the red mage in front of her. After all, he had the power to control the Iifa tree; so she wouldn't exactly be losing anything if she chose to connect with the master instead of the servant. There was only one thing that stopped her.

"Kisenian!" The commanding voice made her shrink back instantly, and Kuja look up in shock. Walking towards them was an old man, dressed in a black armor. Where his chest should have been was a hollow with a bright red orb floating in what should have been the center of his rib cage. A black cape fluttered behind him as he walked forward, a striking contrast to his long chalk white hair and beard. Kuja knew the person well. "Garland…" he growled, half in hatred, half in disbelief. The wizard was here? Alive? But wasn't the whole point of getting Cosmos to revive him?

"We need Kuja in a life threatening state if we want any chance of getting to Cosmos. Possessing him will just anger her," the wizard scolded the flower, ignoring Kuja for the moment.

The genome let out a snort, "Why would she even come in the first place? I don't even _know _Sailor Cosmos!"

Garland spared his creation a glance, "Don't you?"

"Of course not! I know a Sailor Scout, I'll admit that, but who I know is-"

"Sailor Moon, correct?" Kuja looked at the older man in surprise when he finished his sentence for him. He turned fully to the silver haired genome, "So she hasn't told you yet…Seems she hasn't lost her touch after all these years."

Kuja suddenly felt cold when he heard his former master speak, "What are you talking about?"

The old wizard turned from the genome, "For countless Millennia, an entity known as Chaos walked amongst the stars, spreading his darkness wherever he went. After some time, he managed to take control over a particular Sailor Scout by the name of Sailor Galaxia. With her power, he began to strike at an accelerated rate, having convinced the scout that she needed the brightest star seed in the universe as her own. She 'deserved' it after all...

"Their search led them to a little blue planet far from here called 'Earth'. Unlike most planets which had one protector each, this one had ten plus their servants and friends. Galaxia tore them apart one by one until finally there was only one left, the leader of that team, and princess of the solar system. Galaxia attempted to destroy the princess as well, take her Sailor Crystal and be rid of any possible threats to her quest. However, Chaos knew something that the little golden scout didn't, and attacked her. She was saved from a horrible burning death by the Galactic Cauldron when the princess grabbed her and pulled her free. In that moment, Galaxia realized she had found the brightest star she had been looking for within that princess, but it was too late; Chaos took her Sailor Crystal as well, using the power of her Sailor crystal as well as the other sailor crystals she had collected to destroy the Earth while the little princess could do nothing but watch in horror.

"Whether it was her own will or that of Destiny itself crying out, a new power sprung to life within that princess, awakening her as a new sailor scout, one who was to avenge all of the other sailor soldiers which had fallen to Chaos. She was a warrior that legends had spoke of; Chaos's arch nemesis, his complete opposite whose destiny was to fight him until one fell. However…now that her power had awakened, neither could exist without the other, so neither could win, and thus millennia ensued with Cosmos and Chaos battling each other until it came to an abrupt stop five millennia ago due to some unforeseen circumstance. Chaos was defeated, and there was no sign of Cosmos until days before you came back from the dead."

"Yes yes, and then after that you decided to send me on a mission to find her and lure her back here so that you could use her power to revive yourself, what does this have to do with Serenity?!" Kuja demanded impatiently. He was not in the mood for one of Garland's long and boring speeches. The spirits of Terra knew they could go on forever if someone let them…

Garland looked at him in surprise, then amusement, "So she even calls herself 'Serenity' now? It seems she truly has given up any hope of living a normal life, if she doesn't even use the name given to her by her mortal family…"

"What are you talking about?" The silver haired genome's face would have paled had he not already had porcelain skin. He had a feeling he knew where this was going, but he would not jump to that conclusion. He would have to hear it from Garland's lips.

The wizard confirmed it, "Serenity lived with a mortal family who raised her, never realizing that she was not truly their daughter. In fact, she herself thought she was their daughter until she became Sailor Moon, and realized that she was in fact not a human, but the Lunarian princess, Moon Princess Serenity. As she grew and her powers developed, she was known by a few more names: Sailor Moon, Moon Princess Serenity, the future Neo Queen Serenity, Super Sailor Moon, the Messiah of Light, Eternal Sailor Moon, and finally…Sailor Cosmos."

Kuja let his eyes drift to the ground as his shocked mind tried to register this information. "Why didn't she tell me?" he whispered, not expecting an answer. Was she more wary of him than he thought? Did his past truly make that much of an impression on her that she wouldn't dare tell him she was the one he was looking for? Had he not proved himself an ally? He had protected her, clothed her, comforted her, laughed and shared his own thoughts and uncertainties with her, he had even forced himself to learn a new spell within a few minutes time just so that she could live…

"She left you oblivious in order to protect you," Garland said casually, getting the genome's attention again. "Your little Serenity didn't want you or Zidane to be forced to take up the duties of a knight, constantly fighting until you were destroyed in battle or for the rest of eternity, whichever came first."

Silver eyebrows furrowed slightly, "Why would we have to?"

"Honestly Kuja, first you rush me along because you didn't want to hear me speak, and now you will not stop asking question."

"Answer me Garland!" the genome commanded his voice authoritative towards his old master despite the situation he was in.

"Very well," the wizard replied, "I did not just choose any ordinary souls to use when creating my angels. I looked long and hard for the perfect ones. Before I created you Kuja, your soul belonged to a Lunarian high priest, and Zidane's belonged to a Solar Prince. Both were powerful warriors who had they not been struck down by Sailor Galaxia too soon in the battle, might have ended the destruction of the Moon Kingdom before the Kingdom fell. The duties of these two were to protect the Moon Princess, and defeat any evil that crossed their paths. Such duties are bestowed upon the bearers by destiny, and thus are passed down throughout reincarnates. Serenity is no stranger to this; she _is_ a sailor scout and the Moon Princess after all. So, she kept it quiet about who she is because if she exposed you to her full power, it might reawaken your memories and you to your mission."

As Garland spoke, Kuja thought back to the times when he thought he was hallucinating. Serenity had resembled a princess back in those visions…was it a memory of her from his incarnate then? But then…why did he only get the appearance and nothing else? Or…was that all he received? There was that dream, the one where Serenity had looked like a princess. Zidane and himself had been present in it, and she had called Zidane by a different name when he fell to that golden soldier. Perhaps that was more of a memory than a dream…? He shook his head, why was he thinking about this nonsense? Serenity was on her way there to save him and he's chatting away with this old man! "Garland, the Kisenian Blossom collected enough power to bring you back from the dead, my power should be enough to restore you so that you don't have a limited life. Take it, use my life to fuel yours, but leave Serenity alone!" he tried to bargain.

The old wizard laughed, "My dear little creation. The power Kisenian is draining from you is already being put to use to restore me…but it is not nearly enough." He gestured below them and some mist cleared. Kuja let out an involuntary gasp. An enormous black crystal filled the bottom of the Iifa tree. Various branches and roots were connected to it, feeding it more and more power each moment. "That is Black Poison Crystal or Dark Crystal, whichever you prefer to call it," Garland answered Kuja's unspoken question, "If I am to fully regenerate my power, I need that crystal at full strength. I have been feeding it the energy Kisenian has collected, but it is nowhere near strong enough. Cosmos defeated the Death Phantom, a spirit merged with the planet where this crystal was created, so I have no doubts her energy would be more than enough to give it strength.

"Do you honestly think she's dumb enough to run headlong into danger without being prepared? She will come in as Sailor Cosmos and tear everything to shreds before you can get a hold of her," Kuja smirked.

"Hence the reason why I need you here," Garland returned the smirk, making Kuja lose his own. "Cosmos has her own amazing healing powers, but in order to save your life Kuja, she needs to use the Silver Crystal. She cannot use it as Sailor Cosmos." The genome opened his mouth, but Garland continued, "A sailor scout cannot use their own star seed as a weapon; it would kill them instantly. However, since the silver crystal is the star seed of Cosmos, as long as she is not transformed as that silver warrior, she can use it….her powers are much weaker in her other forms when compared to Cosmos, not to mention the Crystal still drains her to some extent when she uses it…she won't stand a chance."

A growl escaped from Kuja's throat as the genome tried to break his bonds again, "No! I won't let you harm her!"

Garland shook his head, "Do you have a choice in the matter?"

Kuja concentrated all of his power into his palms, "_FLARE STAR!_" Kisenian moved upwards and Garland found himself having to set up a barrier as the silver genome's anger fueled his attack enough so that the vines could not absorb all the power. Flames and energy slammed against Garland's barrier, but were unable to get through to the wizard within.

A crackling noise from below caught Kuja's attention and he looked back down at the Dark Crystal. Black energy crackled on the surface before what resembled a black lightning bolt flashed up towards them, searching for the power source if has just sensed. It found it, and Kuja let out a cry of pain as the energy struck him. The next thing he saw was darkness.

* * *

A flash of silver. That's all anyone would have seen if there were people inhabiting this area of the world. Cosmos flew over the oceans at a speed she rarely went at when on a planet. 'Stupid stupid stupid stupid!' she continuously scolded herself. How did she not see this sooner? The Kisenian Blossom, the appearance of Dark Crystal, the two moons, her power acting up; it all made sense! And she let Kuja get wrapped up in this as well! How dense could she be?!

As she neared the enormous tree, the silver scout stopped in her tracks. She could sense Dark Crystal, and a great deal of it at that. Every fiber of her being told her she was walking into a trap; it would be better to just destroy the tree from afar and be done with it before things got hairy.

But then…she couldn't do that. A small sigh escaped her lips as she looked at the Iifa tree, still miles away. It wasn't that she lacked the power to do the job; no she could take it out with the bat of an eye. But Kuja was in there...Her chest tightened at that thought. It had never occurred to her how close she had grown to the silver haired genome, but now that she was confronted with it, she realized that she didn't care if she was walking into a trap, just so long as he came out ok. 'Funny…I haven't felt this strongly about someone since my sailor scout days…' the faintest of smiles crossing her lips. It was not a sad smile, or one of memories that happened years ago, but a serene smile of the here and now. If she walked into that tree, she would be resigning any hope she had of living a normal life ever again, but for the first time in her life…she was ok with that. If she had to live her life constantly fighting back darkness, so be it; the people of this planet proved that it was not just the Sailor soldiers fighting for their right to peace.

And if she could aid them in the battle, so that they could sleep easily at night and not have to worry about what the next day would bring, it would be more than enough for her to sleep easily as well. With a great flap of her wings, she sped off towards the tree once again.

* * *

His head was throbbing…Kuja let out a groan and opened his eyes. He hadn't expected that crystal to lash out like that…He pushed himself up off the ground, despite the comforting coolness the marble floor brought to the side of his face. Wait…pushed himself up? Marble floor? He looked at his hands in surprise. Sure enough, he wasn't bound anymore. And with a quick glance around, he knew he was nowhere near the Iifa tree. Silver eyebrows narrowed slightly as Kuja realized he had been here before. This was the same place he had dreamed of when he was in Black Mage Village with Serenity.

Getting to his feet, he was relieved to find that this time he did have full control of his body. "How did I get here?" he wondered aloud.

"Technically, you are still in the Iifa Tree," Kuja turned around in shock, hearing what he could have sworn was himself. He stared dumbfounded at the new comer. Aside from having different attire and no makeup, the man was identical to himself!

"Who are you?" the silver haired genome asked, wary of the newcomer.

The other smirked slightly, "I think you already know that."

Yes, Kuja did, but he could not believe it. "So you are me?" he asked, just to be sure.

The man nodded, "Panagiotis, if that makes things easier for you. I am a memory of your past self."

Kuja crossed his arms, "So I suppose you are here to tell me about my past, make me remember and unlock hidden skills deep within me to help end this fight?"

Panagiotis laughed, "I hardly think you need my knowledge to end this fight. I merely came here to make a request." Kuja raised an eyebrow in inquiry and his incarnate continued, "I know the feelings you hold towards Serenity, I myself loved her just as much as you do now. Because of that, I know you will not mind doing what I ask…"

"Are you asking me to protect her?" Kuja asked, eyebrows both raised, "She hardly needs protecting."

"Yes, she is very good at hiding her weakness," the priest nodded, "However, she is not invincible, and when those she cares for are in danger, she tends to put herself in harm's way." His eyes showed no nonsense as he continued, "Serenity is finally starting to come to terms with whom and what she is, but until she accepts all of it, this battle might be too much for her to handle alone. Do what you can to aid her."

"I will do all that I can, but I doubt I can do much, considering my powers are being drained," Kuja replied.

"Serenity will deal with that," Panagiotis replied. He frowned slightly and paused a moment before continuing, "One more thing; although hidden abilities can come forth when a person is at their physical limit, it can also occur when a person is at an emotional limit. Remember that."

_Kuja!_ Kuja wanted to ask what the priest meant by that, but soon he felt a rushing sensation as he returned to the real world. He groaned as he started coming to his senses, a dull throbbing in his body as he felt the vines around his wrist draining him of his strength. What had woken him up? "Kuja!" He tried to look up at the owner of the voice, but found himself too weak to do even that. 'Damn! Go away Serenity!' He mentally pleaded; there was no way he could protect her if he was as weak as he was!

Of course, since he had not said it out loud, the silver warrior paid no heed and rushed over to him once she spotted the genome. "It's a trap…" he managed to get out once a silvery white sailor suit and silvery white heels entered his line of sight. It took a moment for his mind to register that she had not even bothered to transform out of her Cosmos form when she came to him. She had been so careful about it up until that moment…why did she let it slip now?

Cosmos sighed, using one arm to support the body of the man while with her other she summoned one of her daggers, "I already know it's a trap." With a quick swipe, she sliced the vines in two, letting his arms fall freely to his sides. Gently, she lowered him to a laying position, turning him over so that she could check his vital signs. Her eyes widened in shock; was his heart…stopping?! 'I can't heal something like that as Cosmos!' she realized, knowing she would need to use the Silver Crystal to do something like that. She moved her hand to cover her brooch, intending to turn into Sailor Moon, when Kuja's hand grabbed hold of hers.

"Serenity don't!" he warned, "They want you to take your Sailor Moon form. They said it would be easier to catch you that way."

She shook her head, "I don't care, I'm not going to lose you. Not to anyone, especially not _him_." Kuja looked at her in confusion as she transformed from the silver warrior he had been searching for all this time, to the Moon scout he had been traveling with. What did she mean by "him"? Was she talking about Garland? Or was there someone else he was unaware of?

He was brought out of his thoughts when what Sailor Moon was doing caught his attention and sparked his curiosity. The top of her golden brooch vanished, revealing a small red gem in the shape of a star. The gem left the brooch and floated in the center of her hands, changing from a red star into a silver flower. 'The Silver Crystal!' he realized.

She held it over his body and close her eyes, 'Please, silver crystal, give him the strength to live…' The small crystal began to glow before a soft white light came from it, bathing Kuja in its healing powers. The genome let out a gasp as he felt his strength return to him, and pushed himself into a sitting position as soon as the light faded. He gazed at the scout in front of him as she put away the silver crystal in the brooch.

However before he could say a word to her, Sailor Moon jumped to her feet and backed up a good ten feet, pulling out her Eternal Moon wand. As soon as she did, Kuja realized what was going on; the crystal had lashed out at him for his Flare Star, now it was lashing out at her for her healing spell.

"Moon Eternal Crystal Kiss!" Her weakened attack was no enough to deflect the dark power, but it slowed it enough to give her a change to dodge.

The silver genome cursed under his breath; what could he do to help her? If he used any spells that could make a dent in that thing, that dark magic was going to come after him as well! Wait…magic! He looked at the crystal again. There was no doubt about it; those beams of power were of the dark element! He turned to the Sailor scout and concentrated, "Reflect!"

Serenity blinked in surprise when she found herself surrounded by a shimmering red aura. The startle was enough to distract her so that she did not have time to avoid the next attack from the Dark Crystal. Bracing herself for impact, she was surprised when the energy bounced off the aura and back at the crystal. Of course it didn't do any damage, but it was not hitting her either.

"You stay out of this battle!" The familiar voice caught both Kuja and Serenity's attention as the large rope of vines and branches the two were standing on came to life. With a flick of one of the thicker branches, Kuja suddenly found himself falling, while Serenity called after him in shock. With a flap of her wings, she sped after him, only to be stopped short when the vines wrapped around her ankle, others quickly wrapping around her arms waist and legs as more kept coming.

"No!" Kuja cried out, momentarily forgetting that he himself was in no better of a situation. That is until a familiar roar caught his attention. He landed on a feathery back as the silver dragon swooped in, catching his master with ease. Now on the back of his loyal dragon, Kuja rushed back towards where the scout had been caught, only to be blocked by the branches of the Iifa tree flailing left and right in an attempt to keep him away. He was forced to land as one of the branches struck the dragon's side, and looked up where the sailor scout had once been seen. "Serenity!" he cried out, hoping to get a reply.

None came from the Sailor scout. "You're wasting you time," Kisenian laughed as she came down to his level, "Already my flora has drained away most of her power; I doubt she is even conscious anymore, if she's even alive."

Kuja's eyes widened, "No…Serenity. Serenity! _**SERENITY!!**_"

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


	34. Chapter 34

View of a coffee room, a bunch of muses and (stolen) characters are hanging out drinking coffee

View of a coffee room, a bunch of muses and (stolen) characters are hanging out drinking coffee

Kuja: -Walks in- Hey has anyone seen the "lovely" writer lately?

Wufei: -sips tea- Thankfully no; she's been harassing characters from your storyline lately.

Kuja: True, but she hasn't been around for over a month.

IY: What month is it in her world?

Kuja: I dunno, September maybe?

IY: Feh, she got caught up in school and other things.

Kuja: So how do we get her back here then?

IY: Watch and learn… -stands up- FREE DR. PEPPER!!

ZT: -Pops up out of nowhere- Where where??

Kuja: …That's all it took?

IY: Always. –to ZT- and YOU!

ZT: Eep!

IY: Get your little writing butt moving and update his story!

ZT: But but! I have school.

Wufei: If you have time to look for soda, you have time to update.

ZT: True…

Wufei: So get to it woman!

ZT: Alright alright sheesh…Sorry for the long time it took to update, tons of stuffs been going on. So I won't keep you waiting any longer. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 34

_Finally…_Garland couldn't hide his grin as he felt the Dark Crystal below, powered by the Silver Warrior, pulse strength back into him. He had waited a long time for this, almost giving up when Cosmos did not respond to the atrocities occurring on Gaia one year ago. It had been slightly depressing; he knew she was alive, but perhaps she had gone to resume her normal life or rebuild her home planet, forgetting about his very existence. He would chuckle after that; no she would never forget, not with the history they had, and if she used her head, which she had been doing much more of last time they had met, she would know he wasn't gone. But that still didn't answer where the little brat was hiding! When she finally appeared on Gaia, the wizard had felt a mixture of pleasure, relief, and annoyance. She was finally on the planet he was stuck on, but why did she take so long? The war would have been the perfect time to capture her, tired out by constant battling with monsters and her coming to him like the others did without the wizard having to pull more strings than he already was. Not to mention he was not a spirit at the time! Instead, she came a year later; his Iifa tree was useless, his body destroyed, Terra gone, the mist vanished, Kuja dead, cities almost completely rebuilt, and all things settling down.

Getting her to where she was turned out to be a larger problem than anticipated. It took the power he had been reserving for his own resurrection to bring Kuja back from the grave. The wizard expected the genome to value his life enough to do as he commanded, however it didn't take long for him to realize Kuja was intending to betray him yet again. As things were, he had no choice but to seek an alliance with a formidable creature. Reaching out, trying to connect to something from Gaia, Terra, the solar system, the galaxy, and finally beyond even that, he found the Kisenian blossom, planted in a clump of soil, all that remained of a planet she had obliterated. Seeing great potential in this creature, but also knowing the threat she could pose, Garland made a deal with the flower: if she helped him in capturing Cosmos and restoring his body, not only would he give her a host, but he would have her host be the Iifa tree itself, with which she could have an endless amount of power to produce her seeds, and the tree itself was virtually indestructible so long as Gaia still had some lie on it. Agreeing to these terms, Garland then sent a Behemoth to fetch the flower and bring her to him. Once she was there, the two had a dispute over leadership. Garland had expected this and with the show of the Dark Crystal he had in his possession and the power he still had even after death, he was able to settle that little squabble with ease. Then there was the problem of Necron; with his appearance at the end of the war, Garland was fearful the creature would be drawn to the power of Cosmos and the Kisenian/Iifa Tree should they battle. It took the intelligence, skills, and power of Kisenian and Garland combined, but eventually they were able to put up a sort of lock on the Zero System, making it impossible for the creature to come forth. With Necron not a threat anymore, the wizard was able to focus on more important matter, such as luring the Sailor scout to the tree and how to get her to fall into his trap. That had been the real trick. Were he to capture Cosmos, which would have been a full adventure in itself were she in her star warrior form, she would have survived the tree's attack, and still posed a great threat to him. If he wanted her out of the way, he needed her as Sailor Moon, where she was not fully immortal to him yet still had enough power to bring him back to original strength. The side effects of the twin moons on her power had been an unexpected, bothersome, and as convenient as not factor; she wouldn't put up much of a fight when she was in her Sailor Moon form now, but at the same time, her strength would not be enough to fully revive him. He'd have to find another way to start the process and at least revive his old body. Luckily, Kisenian was already storing up a great deal of power in the Iifa tree, fusing her own technique of energy draining with the tree's natural soul collecting process and doubling the intake the tree usually had. He was able to restore his old body with a bit of that power, then used that despicable Kuja's life force to strengthen it a great deal. That wound up working in his favor as well, since Cosmos was forced to become Sailor Moon to heal him…

With that thought he glanced down many meters to where the silver haired genome was. That the Moon brat fully healed him before she was captured, ending the life limit Garland had put on him. Pity. His creation seemed to be still in shock; his ever faithful dragon had to force him onto his back to get them both out of harm's way. Some of his affections for the princess in his old life must now be aimed towards her reincarnation. _Even in your new life you cannot be with your princess without death getting in the way, can you?_ Garland silently mocked. Well, if it weren't for those two, he would have never been able to restore his power as he had…perhaps he should show his gratitude… "Kisenian." The flower woman came to his side after hearing him call her, "I have no use for that wretch anymore. Help him join his little friend in the afterlife."

"As you wish," Kisenian smirked, speeding out with an entourage of vines and branches behind her.

The wizard watched her leave. "Now…as for you," a figure stepped out of the shadows as Garland spoke, "Those Gaian heroes are bound to be here soon. Welcome them." The figure bowed then vanished.

With the others gone, the wizard turned back to the cocoon of vines which imprisoned the Sailor Scout. He smirked, "So this is how the great Sailor Cosmos meets her end…"

* * *

"Zidane are you going to tell us what is the matter? Why did we leave without getting Serenity and Kuja first?" Freya asked in exasperation, having gotten no answer from the tailed boy much like the others since they set off. Now they were all standing on deck as the ship sped towards the Iifa tree, all eyes focused on the genome standing in front of them.

Zidane didn't answer right away, his eyes trained ahead to where the Iifa tree was growing larger and larger in the distance. Something huge was going on there; he knew it. 'Serenity, what trouble did you get yourself into?'

The Burmecian stared at him for a few moments before turning back to where the others were, thinking she'd get no luck with him like the rest of them. "…They're both at the tree." Freya turned her attention back to Zidane when he spoke, "I'm not entirely sure what happened, but Kuja left to the tree and Serenity followed right after." He lowered his eyes, "Whatever they went after, it must be really bad…I don't Serenity expects to come out of it alive."

"What?!" everyone's attention was focused on the last part of what Zidane said.

He nodded, "She's not one to run off without telling anyone, not unless what she's doing is too dangerous and doesn't want anyone to get involved."

"Wait, if she didn't tell anyone about this, how do you know where they went?" Eiko asked.

"That…is a long story," he replied, the tone in his voice hinting that he didn't want to talk about that at the moment, but he would explain it to them as much as he could later.

"But Zidane, Serenity is a Sailor Scout like this silver warrior 'Cosmos'. If another scout was in that sort of danger, wouldn't she come to her aid?" Dagger pointed out.

"She would if she wasn't the one in danger." Zidane whipped around in surprise and all eyes trained on Amarant who was leaning against a post. He gave them a bored look, "It wasn't that hard to figure out; Cosmos realized she was drawing too much attention, so she disguised herself. Serenity appears at the same time, happens to be a 'Sailor Scout' herself, and is always pressing things about Cosmos as if she's known her for some time, even though when the names of her former teammates come up, Cosmos is never mentioned. She gets things very well for someone who has just been guarding her own system for some time, and if that is her charge, even if it was destroyed, why would she have come to Gaia of all places? As Cosmos, she could have infinite reasons from being curious about the 'silver haired man' who apparently strikes a resemblance to her, to wondering how Gaia is fairing after a huge war, to wanting to make sure Necron is really gone from here."

"Choice three," Zidane piped up, getting the attention back to him. He laughed a little and rubbed the back of his head, "I figured out she was Cosmos way before I knew about Sailor Moon, but I didn't confront her about it until the incident in Madain Sari." His expression turned serious, "She told me that she had fought Necron before, and the battle had knocked her out. She woke up when she literally crash landed on Gaia. Seren thought that she'd only been out for a little while, but after a trip to Daguerro and finding an old text with some info on that particular battle, she discovered that it actually took place over five thousand years ago!"

"I knew she was old!" Eiko exclaimed victoriously. Then she thought of something, "Wait, if she's that powerful, why did she have such a tough time with those blossoms? I mean if Cosmos is the 'most powerful scout', shouldn't she have been able to plow through em, even in her Moon form?"

He scratched his head, "That's another reason why she kept quiet. Her Sailor Moon form and Sailor Cosmos form are kinda different…I'm not exactly sure how, in fact I don't think _she_ knows exactly how, but they are. For some reason her powers are acting up in her moon form; she's a lot weaker than she should be. With the Kisenians roaming around, she wanted to keep it quiet that there was only one scout instead of two, so that the blossoms might take care in attacking us because they would think there were reinforcements."

"And that's what has you worried isn't it?" Freya realized, "Do you think someone figured Serenity out?"

"I bet it was that scoundrel Kuja! I knew he couldn't be trusted!" Steiner bellowed, jumping up and down making a clanking ruckus with his armor.

"If it were just Kuja, she would have come to us," Zidane replied, "No, I think he was the bait."

The Alexandrian queen looked at him confused, "Bait?"

He nodded, "I noticed that he would look a little sick from time to time…and he said he was looking for Cosmos for her help in killing the Iifa tree for good. At first I wasn't sure what to think of it, but now I think someone's been trying to pull Kuja's strings. I know for a fact Kuja was dead when I left the Iifa tree, and I knew that tree was dead too. But they're both alive now…Whoever revived them is behind this and wanted Kuja to lure Cosmos there." Zidane sighed, "I don't think Kuja ever really planned to go along with whoever this mastermind is, especially after meeting Serenity."

"So he knew she was Cosmos as well?" Steiner clarified.

"I don't think so…but he knew that Cosmos was a sailor scout and most likely a friend to Serenity, so that made him throw out luring her to the tree," he replied.

Freya blinked in surprise, "After seeing Kuja as nothing as a villain for such a long time, its surprising to think that he could feel something like that just like any other person…" Dagger nodded in agreement.

A load roar caught their attention and the group turned their attention back to the Iifa tree. During the conversations the ship had reached the tree and was landing at a safe distance, much like it had during the violent outburst one year ago.

"I don't like the looks of this…" Amarant grumbled, standing straight and staring at the Iifa tree, its limbs shaking and slithering about with a sinister life.

"How did this happen…?" Dagger asked in shock. How had the tree come back to life? And why was it having another violent reaction?

Zidane focused more on the location of the roar. He found it within a few moments; Kuja's silver dragon was darting to and fro, avoiding some of the terrible limbs as they attempted to tear its wings right off its back. Hanging onto the back of the creature was a silver haired man, attempting to stay on as the dragon as it made its getaway. He whistled, "KUJA!!" Although the man didn't reply, the dragon did. With a great flap of its wings, the silver dragon pulled away from the limbs and landed near the ship. The blond wasted no time in getting off the ship and over to where his brother was, the rest of the group on his heels.

Kuja numbly slipped off his faithful pet's back, and slumped to his knees. Zidane was kneeling by his side in an instant. "Kuja are you alright? What happened? What's going on? How'd you get here? Where's Serenity?" he pressed, asking each question after he was sure Kuja wasn't going to answer the previous one.

The elder of the two had been silent, eyes void of anything as his gaze rested upon the ground in front of him. That is until the last question came from his brother's lips. At the mention of Serenity's name, his eyes widened and his whole body tensed. He opened his mouth to speak, but at first no sound came out. He closed his mouth for a moment then tried again. "He- A trap- I couldn't- There were too- She- and then- Oh gods!" he finally cried out, burying his face in his hands.

Zidane felt the hairs on the back of his neck bristle at Kuja's display. His throat suddenly felt swollen and he found it hard to speak,

Dagger felt a pit grow in her stomach as she realized what was going on, "D-don't tell me she…"

"I'm afraid so…Your friend has rejoined the cycle of souls." All heads turned towards the person who spoke. Not ten feet in front of them was the branch holding the Kisenian Blossom with vines snaking like Medusa's hair behind it. Standing next to her was a woman in golden armor resembling the sailor suit.

Zidane blinked in surprise when he saw the woman. He recognized the armor, and the person, but he'd never seen the person _in_ that armor. "…Mikoto?"

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time.


	35. Chapter 35

ZT: Hiya everyone!

Kuja: Well look who decided to update

ZT: I know, I know, and I'm SOOOOOOO sorry this took so long! Had to put my writing skills to work with three English classes this semester.

Kuja: Excuses as always…

ZT: Whatever. Anyway, thanks for bearing with me everyone. I have two more weeks of major assignments, then I should get rolling with the end of this fic. Oh! And some exciting news: with this chapter, OSCAF reaches 100,000+ words!

Kuja: What??! Are you serious?

ZT: I know amazing isn't it? I haven't had a published fic/story hit 100k before!

Kuja: That's not what I meant.

ZT: Huh?

Kuja: You've been putting me through this torture for over 100,000 words already? You cruel woman!

ZT: …Anyway…On with the show! I don't own FF9 or SM. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter 35

"…Mikoto?" Zidane asked in disbelief. What was she doing here? And why was she dressed in gold armor? Was that the Kisenian Blossom next to her? Why was Mikoto not concerned about it standing so close? They had told the village about the blossoms when they had picked up Steiner and Vivi… They weren't _working together_ were they? With that thought Zidane got his wits together. "What's going on? How do you know Serenity's gone? And why are you dressed like that?" he demanded.

The female genome looked at her brother with her usual calm expression, "I know she is gone because I was there when she was captured by the Iifa tree."

"And I drained every bit of energy from that little moon brat for Garland," Kisenian added with a smirk.

Freya's eyes narrowed, "So Garland's behind all of this mess?!"

Kisenian waved it off, "Oh don't put the blame solely on the old man; I had a score to settle with that little princess."

"Why Mikoto?" Dagger spoke up, stepping forward, "Why would you ally yourself with that wizard? He wanted to make you his third angel of death! He was going to make you destroy what is now your home! Don't you think he'll try to make you do that now?"

"I'm quite sure of it," Mikoto replied, shocking everyone.

"How can you say that and so easily and still claim you serve the man?!" Steiner exclaimed, clenching his fists in anger.

Mikoto did not speak for a moment. She looked at Kuja, still kneeling on the ground, face hidden and having the appearance of one defeated. Then she looked at Zidane; he was studying her with calculating eyes, trying to figure her out. She directed his words to everyone as she spoke, but her attention was focused on him, "My soul is the only one Master Garland chose solely for becoming the angel of death." Seeing the confused look on her brother's face, she continued. "Master Garland knew that Cosmos would eventually come, so he took the souls of two people she knew in her past life, created two genomes that mirrored the people in appearance, and made them his first two angels of death. Cosmos would never lay a finger on her comrades, and Master Garland planned on using that to his advantage, having the two of you destroy her. Then, once that was complete, he would set me loose as his true angel of death. "

"What?!" Dagger gasped, looking at Zidane. Serenity knew his incarnate? He didn't look too phased by that bit…did he already know? Even if he didn't, that would explain why Serenity was so close to him; she was seeing one of her lost allies again.

"And you're ok with that?!" Zidane pressed, choosing to ignore the past life bit at the moment.

"…I was a killer in my past life as well. In fact, the reason why I was made to look like a genome and not like my past self was because Cosmos knew me…and would have most likely destroyed me had she seen me," she replied. Before anyone could ask anything, she continued…

Kuja was only vaguely aware of what was happening around him. He could tell that the flower had followed him, and that Mikoto was there beside it, wearing some sort of exotic golden armor. He was also aware that the dragon had set him down near Zidane and the other heroes of Gaia, all of which seemed focused on whatever the female genome was saying. But the thing he was most aware of…was Serenity not being there.

He didn't want to believe it; he was supposed to protect her! He had made that promise to _himself_ just few seconds prior to her… _Damn it!_ he cursed mentally. Why? Why did this have to happen? Why did that old wizard have to come back from the grave? Why did Garland have to revive _him?_ If Kuja had known this would be the outcome of his living, he would have chose death when he'd originally been given the option! Why did Serenity have to go and save him? He's an enemy to Gaia, and she the heroine of the stars; her life should have been prioritized over his! But then…she wouldn't be that heroine if she let anyone fall behind, would she? He closed his eyes and thought back on their travels. Was he never going to have a battle of wits with her again? No more debating on his taste in style? No more dragon rides after an argument about chocobos? Who was going to tease him about being a widow instead of a widower? Was he never again going to get that reminder that he was part of a family just by looking at someone's smile? Or yell at the heavens for scaring the girl as he held her small frame in his protective arms? Was he really supposed to just sit here and accept that she was gone?!

As he let his mind linger on these thoughts, his ears picked up bits and pieces of Mikoto's dialogue. However, all his previous thoughts flew out the window when his little sister finished her explaination: "After all…I am the one who destroyed her sailor scouts." Didn't Serenity mention that Sailor Galaxia destroyed her team? So Mikoto was Galaxia reborn?!

"You?!" he heard Zidane gasp.

"As Galaxia, I almost got Sailor Moon as well, twice actually, but when I attacked, someone intervened both times," the young girl stated.

"Looks like she didn't get away from me though…" Kisenian smirked, "But then again, she didn't escape unscathed last time she came across my kind either, just as you lot won't escape now…"

Even though Kuja was still in the same position, he was now listening intently to the people around him. So both of the old man's pawns faced against Sailor Moon before…and they almost won? Did that mean Garland had been planning on her downfall since before he even created the angels? It would be too much coincidence if he just happened to stumble across the two beings that almost pulled it off. He thought about what Mikoto had said before and frowned. Had things gone the wizard's way, Kuja would have been fighting Serenity a year ago instead of Zidane and his team?! The silver haired genome felt something swell up inside of him. It felt as if his blood and adrenaline were pumping through his body with more force than he'd felt in a long time. He felt like screaming, but took deep breaths to keep composed. His temperature began to rise, and the silver man saw red.

The Gaian heroes drew their weapons as the Kisenian prepared to attack, "Say hello to the moon brat when you see her." The branches of the Iifa tree lashed out at full speed towards the team. However, an explosion of flames drove them back at the last moment. All eyes turned towards Kuja as he got to his feet. A fiery red aura surrounded him and traces of magic still sparked in his palm from where he had cast a Flare Star. "You guys deal with Mikoto; the tree's mine," he stated in a low growl. Hearing the tone in his voice and seeing the aura, no one protested. After all, each and every one of them knew that aura, and knew what caused it.

"Oh? You want to play now?" Kisenian asked, preparing for another attack, "I know your power now Kuja. The power of the first angel of death isn't enough to destroy the Iifa Tree and myself."

"How about the Destroyer of Terra?" he asked, looking her dead in the eyes for the first time since they had been inside the tree. What Kisenian saw made her recoil in shock for a moment. His eyes…they were filled with rage and the desire to unleash his wrath upon the one he was gazing at. She also saw power; an unimaginable amount of power that she didn't even think a mortal was capable of possessing. Garland mentioned that the genome had a power like that, but he couldn't just call upon it at any time. The old wizard had seen it himself only once. This couldn't be it, could it? No, Garland said he needed to be attacked over and over again until he reached his limit for that to happen. He wasn't attacked physically, so nothing would have set it off, right? He couldn't be transforming could he? He wasn't going into-

He was. "Trance."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


	36. Chapter 36

ZT: Whee!!! (Runs around) WHEEEEEE!!

Kuja: Um…I've got nothing. What are you doing?

ZT: Running around. WHEEE!

Kuja: Dare I ask why? This is crazy even for you.

ZT: My finals ended. WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Kuja: And…?

ZT: We celebrated with a class of 100 people having a potluck, and everyone brought sugary stuff! WHEEEEEEEE!

Kuja: Oh great.

ZT: I know I know! Wh-

Kuja: I GET IT! "Wheeee"! Can "wheeeee" start the show now?

ZT: Oh! Right. Thanks for being so patient everyone. Here's the next chapter of OSCAF. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter (Um…sugar made me lose track)

"Ow…" Serenity rubbed her head and sat up. Darn tree; why'd it have to go and attack her like that for?? Slowly getting to her feet, she glanced around the area. One look told her she was definitely not Thumbelina playing Tarzan anymore; the new surroundings slightly resembled the moon kingdom palace, although it had more of a white hue to it than silver. She had awakened near a white fountain, shaped like three women holding up what looked like the star of Cosmos with water cascading around them. Curiosity got the better of her and she stepped closer to the marble structure. The liquid sparkled with multiple colors, looking as if it was catching the last rays of sunlight as it fell. This caused the moon princess to narrow her eyes in confusion; it was night… _Okay…so this isn't water. What is it then?_ Serenity wondered, reaching out her hand to touch the mystery liquid. It was warm, and sent a pleasant sensation through her hand and up her arm. It also had an energy signature that Serenity knew very well. "It's Star Power…" she gasped, pulling her hand back and looking at the droplets forming a small pool in her palm. Of all the things the scout of the stars had seen in her life, this was a first. Power could control the various elements, and make those elements do anything in any of the four stages of solid, liquid, gas, and plasma but power itself was not matter! Yet somehow, this power had been put into a liquid form. Was that even possible? Science says no, but that sure didn't stop this stuff from being around. But then again, science didn't exactly explain how she was here in the first place.

"Where is 'here' anyway…?" she wondered aloud, glancing around again. She wasn't sure why, but being here felt so…right. It was different than anything she had felt before. Perhaps as the Moon Princess in the Moon Kingdom or as Neo Queen Serenity in Crystal Tokyo she would have felt this way, but not as she was now; not as Sailor Cosmos, who was the reincarnation of the Moon Princess and bypassed the Neo Queen stage when her future kingdom was destroyed. Serenity crossed her arms, _Well…as Princess Serenity I was princess of the moon, and as Neo Queen Serenity, I was supposed to be queen of Earth. Now I'm a scout of the stars…is this a star kingdom?_ She blinked in surprise as the thought came to her. A "star kingdom"? There were so many stars out there though, which one would this be? And why was she brought here? "Hey! Anyone wanna tell my where I am and how I got here?" she finally shouted. Serenity wasn't exactly expecting an answer; the place looked deserted. However, lately the unexpected had been happening a lot, so she decided to take the chance of looking like an idiot anyway.

Her luck held out as she heard a small giggle from nearby. Turning, she pinpointed where the sound had come from. A small stream of the star power liquid flowed into what Serenity could only guess was a shrine of sorts. It was across a marble bridge and elevated slightly on a hill, seeming to shine in sync with the stars in the background. Four orbs of light danced around the shrine, but as the scout took a step forward, they flew through the entrance and out of her sight. "Hey wait!" she called out, hurrying over the bridge and into the shrine. As she stepped through the entrance, Serenity stopped and stared in awe. The inside of the shrine was circular in shape, with a large walkway around the walls before two steps led down to a pool of the star power in the center of the shrine. Around the pool were various flower and trees, full of color and life, and each one shimmering as if it held the power of the stars itself in them. "An oasis inside a shrine?" she wondered aloud, stepping closer to the pool.

"It's lovely isn't it?" The scout of the stars looked around for the owner of the voice. What she found was one of the four orbs she had spotted earlier.

"Yes it is," Serenity replied carefully. Normally she wasn't one to talk to balls of light, but she decided to let it slide today. "Where are we anyway? Do you know why I'm here?"

The orb laughed lightly, "Of course I do; I am one of the four who brought you here Usagi."

She blinked in surprise, "Usagi…? I haven't been called that in millennia…"

"True, but that is your name is it not? You call yourself by so many titles even I find it hard to keep track. Sailor Moon, Princess Serenity, Messiah of Light, Sailor Cosmos, the future Neo Queen Serenity…yet despite that, when you were born to the Tsukinos, they gave you one name and said that was what you were going to be known as: Usagi Tsukino. Strip away all the layers which have been draped over you for millennia, and Usagi is what there will be, so that is what I shall call you."

Serenity nodded slowly, "Alright then…but what do I call you? And how do you know me?"

"My dear, I know you because I have always watched over you. Had there ever been a shrine for my sisters and I, we would have wished you to be the high priestess with how much of ourselves we see in you. So much of us flows in your heart, that it eventually turned into that power which makes you the great warrior Sailor Cosmos, yet never lose that personality which makes you Usagi as well." Serenity opened her mouth to speak, but the orb stopped her. "I know, you are wondering about your other questions," the orb laughed, "Patience always did say she lacked a share in you the size we four have, but I suppose even she can only take our lengthy talks for so long. Usagi, I am one of the great elements of the spirit and heart. I am Justice."

"Justice…? But, you said there aren't shrines honoring you. Yet I know of shrines of gods and goddesses of Justice…" Serenity replied, confusion evident in her voice.

"Those gods and goddesses are filled with my element, but they are not Justice. I am the essence of the concept itself if you may," Justice explained.

"I think I get it…" the scout said, letting the words sink in. She had to admit, even she, who used to say she stood for "justice" before starting every battle, never thought that 'justice' actually existed as a being; she had thought that it, just as the orb had mentioned, was just a concept that people treasured. But then again, she had heard many times before that if you believe in something enough, it becomes real. And justice was definitely believed in… "Why was I brought here?" Serenity asked after she felt she was ready to swallow down more news.

"Well, technically, we are not 'here', but on another plane which has been replicated to look like 'here'. You're physical body is still on Gaia," Justice answered.

"So…this is kind of like when I would die and see my mother on the moon kingdom," Serenity clarified.

The orb bobbed slightly, which Serenity took for a nod, "Exactly."

"So am I dead now?"

"No…the reason why my sisters and I brought your spirit here was because we wanted you to survive. We could not move you physically because it would have taken too much time, but here is the place where your Cosmic powers would activate the swiftest," Justice answered.

"So I was right about who's behind this…Justice please send me back! If my star powers are what kept me alive that means my friends need my help!" she pleaded.

"Your friends are fine. If you wish to help them, you need to know where you are and why we brought you here," Justice replied, floating towards the door, "Come, things will be better explained outside."

"But-"

"Rest assured, dear, none of your friends will be harmed while you are away," a new voice said. The voice was sweet, gentle, soothing…like a loving mother to her child. To accompany the new voice was another orb, this one having the slightest pink hue to it. It floated around Serenity in a comforting manner, and the scout felt her heart lift from the sudden crash it had taken when she realized the danger everyone was in. She looked at the orb and smiled, "Love, right?"

Love glowed a little brighter, her way of beaming, "I thought you might figure me out that quick. Now come; the others are waiting outside." The two orbs flew out and the scout followed quickly after.

Serenity blinked in surprise; the other two orbs were floating around the same fountain she had been at earlier! _Am I running in circles today? _Serenity wondered, walking up to them as Justice and Love joined the other two. She watched the orbs dance around each other, the softest musical notes floating from them, sounding like wind chimes in a slight breeze. She figured they must be conversing with one another and glanced back at the fountain. She let her gaze fall on the statue right in front of her. She wore her hair back in a heart shaped bun, much like Serenity's was in her Cosmos form when her hair was long, with the rest of her hair pooling from it down to just below her neck. She had a small crown resting on her head, with a heart shaped center and small wings spreading out from it. Around her neck was a chocker with three straps, coming to a point in the center of her neck and spreading outwards as they wrapped around. The scout narrowed her eyes; it almost looked like a symbol was supposed to be where the chocker was, but was never carved in. She shook her head and continued examining the statue. Her gown was strapless and form fitting, hugging every curve until slightly below her hip where it pooled out enough to give the person room to move. There was something that resembled a sash/collar of the sailor suit, starting from the right top of the woman's gown and circling around to the back. Again, Serenity thought it looked like something was missing where the collar and dress met, but brushed it aside for now. At the waist were three sashes which wrapped around form one bow on the back of the dress. Here, Serenity knew for a fact something was missing; each sash wrapped around at a different place, yet looked as if it was supposed to be connected to something at her waist. She frowned; why did someone set up this fountain when they hadn't finished this part? Who was this woman anyway? Serenity looked up at the face and blinked in surprise. There was none; the face had not been put in either…

"That's the queen of this kingdom." Justice's voice made the scout jump. How long had they been done conversing with each other?

"Why is her statue incomplete?" she asked, looking at the four orbs in confusion.

"It will complete itself once the queen herself is complete," Justice explained.

Serenity opened her mouth to ask something, anything! But, the last bit confused her far too much. "…What?"

One of the orbs giggled, letting Serenity know this was the one she had heard in the first place. The voice sounded like it belonged to a child, maybe a preteen, but no older than that. "Justice, Usagi-chan doesn't know the story yet! You can't expect her to understand your meaning." The orb danced around Serenity, in a playful manner, "Hi Usagi-chan! I'm called a bunch of things: Innocence, Purity, Virtue…but you can call me Light."

Serenity nodded, "Hello Light."

"Hi! Justice kinda threw that at you without telling you the story of this place and its queen. So I'll tell you, then it will all make sense…I think."

The scout raised an eyebrow, "You think?"

"Sometimes it is difficult for us to explain things to beings that are not omnipresent and omniscient," Love explained, "We see and know so much; sometimes we forget when explaining that those we are speaking to don't see all we do."

She nodded, "I understand; I'll try to keep up."

"Great!" Light danced around in excitement before stopping in front of the scout, "See, this kingdom is called the Star Kingdom. It's new and for the time being is hidden away by our powers. It was created by the power of the queen's heart as she transitioned through the stages of her life."

"Stages?"

"Oh! Guess I better talk about those. People have three stages in her life, sometimes people call it past, present, and future. I don't get why since technically there is always a future and people are always in the present, but since you know about your past life and have traveled to the future before, I think you get the idea." A confirming nod from Serenity pushed Light on, "Anyway, the queen needs to reach her third stage still; she's kinda in a transition between Present and Future, and got stuck."

"Stuck?"

"Things happened," Justice explained, "It might have been a smoother transition if things had gone as she thought they would, but her Present stage was cut short of what she was expecting, a repercussion of looking through time and expecting something when time is a fickle thing anyway. She was forced into the transition stage between Present and Future well before she was ready. Her own power tried to wait it out, hold out on the Future stage until she was well prepared to handle it. Unfortunately, that took a few millennia to do. The queen now thinks that the transition phase is her limit. Because of that, she doesn't consider what the future holds in her own life after her stage is complete, as she had before, and because of that cannot make it to the Future stage."

"I see…so this fountain symbolizes the queen's progress in life." Serenity summed up, "What does this have to do with me? Is she whom I'm supposed to serve? Being the scout of the stars and all…"

"The other two statues are of her Past and Present stage," Light began, "Take a look."

The sailor scout hadn't realized until that moment that she had yet to take a good look at the other statues. Moving counterclockwise around the fountain, she looked at the next statue and gasped. This woman had a long, sleeveless gown with a massive bow tied on the back. Her hair was tied up into two buns with streamers coming out that reached her ankles. A crown similar to the star queen's, minus the wings, rested upon her head. In the center of her forehead was an upturned crescent moon. "Neo Queen Serenity?! But, that would mean the star queen is-!"

"Now you understand," Justice said, watching as the scout moved to look at the last statue, which was of Moon Princess Serenity.

Serenity shook her head, "No, there has to be some mistake. I mean, even if it was true, I never reached my 'Present' stage at all! Crystal Tokyo never came to be!"

"True…Earth was destroyed before you married Endymon," Love replied, "However you did reach the Present stage, if only for a moment." She saw the woman open her mouth to speak, but stopped her, "Think back to your battle all those millennia ago with the Dark Moon Kingdom. When the final battle came, there was only one who could save Small Lady from the Death Phantom's grasp. Neo Queen Serenity was still trapped in her deep sleep, so you used the silver crystal to become your future self in order to save that child and your world."

No doubt, Serenity remembered that fight. She didn't think a temporary transformation technically was supposed to count, but who was she to argue with these spirits? She crossed her arms and looked at the fountain, letting her mind process all that she learned so far.

"I don't know…" she began, letting her mind go back to Zidane, Kuja, and the rest of the crew on Gaia. They were in danger; she should be giving 110% if 100 wasn't enough, not sitting in an illusion of a land trying to awaken some power. She had to admit, every time she went to another stage, she was much stronger, and having more strength might come in handy in that fight. But how long would it take to transform from a scout to a queen? Was it a matter of minutes or hours? Maybe even days? Could her friends hold out long enough for her to come? Was she willing to take that chance?

* * *

"Terra Homing!" The holy power of Madeen flew at Mikoto as Eiko summoned her moogle-turned-Eidolon friend to attack. The scout reborn threw a dark spell at the wave of light coming her way, cancelling the attack out.

However, she quickly had to dodge thanks to Amarant throwing a wing edge at her. She frowned slightly; that former mercenary had chakra techniques, one of which could restore the magic supply and health to some extent should the group run out… he needed to be dealt with quickly. But dealing with him would have to wait, she concluded, as Freya's spear shot down at her from the sky. She was about to move out of the way again when an idea struck the genome. She moved only slightly so that the spear landed beside her, then grabbed it. _The power flowing through this…it's just like that glaive_. Twirling it in her hand, she pointed the blade end towards the Burmecian as she began her descent to the ground again, at the mercy of gravity and whatever decided to attack her at the moment. Freya watched in horror as her own spear began to crackle with menacing black energy. Mikoto's eyes flashed red, "Death Rib-oof!"

She dropped the spear as a ball of energy hit her in the stomach. It wasn't too terribly strong, but it was enough to catch her by surprise. Turning towards the culprit, she found herself facing off with the queen of Alexandria, her Tiger Racket in hand and the eyes of a seasoned warrior staring down the dark scout. "You don't have the power to stand up against me," Mikoto warned.

"Even if I don't, I will still fight you," Dagger replied, tightening her grip on her weapon, "If not there's no telling what will happen to Gaia, including my kingdom!"

She narrowed her eyes, dark energy sparking at her fingertips, "Back down, Your Highness."

"No."

"Firaga!" Mikoto threw a bolt of dark energy behind her, deflecting Vivi's black magic. "Garnet, listen to me, you do _not_ want to fight me!"

The Alexandrian queen's eyes narrowed. "You're right, I don't want to fight you; you were my friend, but if you are going to be a danger to the world, fighting along side those Kisenian blossoms, then I have no choice but to stop you!"

Mikoto sighed, _You already sound like one…_ "Suit yourself," she opened her palm releasing an energy blast in Dagger's direction.

"Princess!" Steiner shouted in terror, his sword glowing. "SHOCK!" A powerful attack flew at Mikoto. She winced as the attack hit her, but shook it off, retaliating with another attack, sending the knight flying into Amarant and Freya behind him.

Time seemed to stop for the queen as the power came towards her. Before it even left Mikoto's hand, she knew she couldn't survive the power about to make contact with her body. Was she really going to be defeated this quickly? This easily? What would happen to her friends if they were to lose one of their two white mages? Could Eiko support the party on her own? What would happen if not? Would they all die? What would happen to Alexandria? To Gaia? No, she couldn't let the world down, people were counting on her! Something inside of her began to stir at that thought. If felt almost like a trance coming on but…not. Before she could think on it more, reality came back to her as a solid mass collided with her, knocking the air out of her and throwing her off her feet. From her spot on the ground, she saw the energy blast sail over her and a mess full of blond hair that belonged to her savior.

"You ok Dagger?" Zidane asked, his blue eyes radiating concern. She nodded numbly as he helped her to her feet. Turning to Mikoto, he narrowed his eyes, "Guys, hang back and deal with any curious mist monsters…" He drew his Ultima Weapon, "I'll deal with Mikoto."

"Are you crazy? She has to be more powerful than even Necron! You can't fight her alone!" Eiko exclaimed.

"Your friends have a point," Mikoto commented.

Zidane's eyes narrowed, "You leave my friends out of this. I'm going alone, Mikoto." _For everyone's sake…_

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Review it!


	37. Chapter 37

ZT: Hi everyone! Well, my sugar high finally wore off.

Kuja: That's good.

ZT: And now I'm drunk on non-alcoholic eggnog.

Kuja:…Non-alcoholic?

ZT: Well yeah, I don't drink after all…

Kuja: Yet you still get intoxicated… Can you not be normal for once?

ZT: I don't have good inspiration when I'm normal. Anyway, on with the show! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter (I've lost track)

To say Kuja was seeing red was clearly the understatement of any person's life. He was seeing, feeling, inhaling, exhaling…he was living red let's just put it that way. As he flew after a now retreating Kisenian blossom, the logical side of the genome's mind wondered exactly how he had gone into trance. As far as he knew, it was only by taking damage that a person could be brought into such a state. He made a mental note to ask his brother about it…_after_ he ripped the petals off that flower he was chasing. A Mistodon suddenly formed out of some mist right in front of his, an attempt to slow the genome down so that Kisenian could escape. "Don't think you can save yourself with Garland's old parlor tricks. I know of all the mist monsters, and I can assure you none are a match for me," Kuja stated with a swipe of his red hair, evading the creature, just letting it fall to its death, and continuing his pursuit of the alien flower as she desperately made her way back to the Iifa tree. Like that would save her…

Kisenian had been warned about Kuja's Trance, but she never thought he could be this powerful. To make it worse, it seemed that his new form wasn't red just for fashion's sake. No, the man's flames were overwhelming even when they didn't hit the mark! Not a good thing when you're a plant…She dove back and down as a stream of flames sailed right over her head. The flower woman scowled, "I've had just about enough of you!" Branches of the Iifa tree lashed out at Kuja like pikes hungry for his flaming red head.

Kuja opened up his hand, purple energy building up before releasing it at the branches, destroying them before they hit their mark, "My thoughts exactly."

Kisenian let out an enraged roar, using the Iifa tree's mist to create her snake-like minions as well as some mist monsters in an attempt to destroy who she was beginning to think was the most powerful person on Gaia.

The genome smirked, throwing more energy balls at the small army coming his way. "No one has told you of my abilities in Trance, have they?"

"Master Garland told me to be wary…" the blossom admitted, "But he also said that it was only after you took a great deal of damage that you would take this form!"

"Well it seems 'Master Garland' played you for the fool." Kuja flew forward, white hot energy flaring up as he did, "He knows less about the Trance state than I do!" With a flick of his wrist, the flower cried out as Kuja's magic knocked it free from the Iifa tree. "This is for Serenity…" he growled, preparing for a final attack. Before he could attack, however, a beam of golden light shot out from one of the branches above, destroying the Kisenian blossom.

Kuja stared in shock when he heard the attacker's voice, "Sorry, I just had to do that myself."

* * *

Metal clashed against metal as two angels of death attempted to subdue each other. At first the rest of Zidane's team had wanted to help despite his telling him to stay out of it. After a few minutes of battling, they suddenly understood why. For whatever reason, Zidane seemed to be able to keep up with Mikoto in a duel. Not only that, he was actually giving her a run for her money.

"When did Zidane learn to fight like that? Surely he wasn't that skilled during our fight with Kuja…" Steiner wondered, slightly in awe at the new level the monkey tailed thief had reached.

"If Cosmos has been his partner in Tantalus, I cannot say I'm all that surprised," Freya commented, remember when the woman had destroyed the grand dragon with ease. Serenity mentioned that she and Zidane had traveled before; it was highly unlikely that Zidane didn't train with her to get an idea of how to work with her if they were in a battle…He would definitely have progressed.

"True, but he fought a few mist monsters when we were picking up Vivi and Steiner; he hadn't gotten _this_ much better!" Eiko exclaimed, eyes shining with admiration as he managed to push the golden warrior back a few paces.

Dagger nodded in agreement, _Zidane…_ Inside, the Alexandrian queen had no idea what was going on, but didn't think it was just hard training made her favorite bandit suddenly a match for his sister. If anything, she considered it might have always been dormant in him; he _was_ Garland's Angel of Death after all…and if this was how powerful Mikoto was and with what she had witnessed from Kuja, it would not be surprising that Zidane had some outstanding abilities himself. But still…in that same thought, she couldn't help but think that was not the whole reason…Serenity was definitely a factor as Freya mentioned, but to what extent? What role did she play in this? The Alexandrian queen frowned slightly; as the thoughts came to her, that feeling in her chest, the one that had felt like an oncoming trance, came back to her slightly. What was going on??

Zidane flipped over Mikoto's golden sword before bringing his Ultima Weapon crashing down on it. "Damn it Mikoto! Why are you doing this?!"

The female genome pressed her weight against the blade, making him have to take a step back before jumping back to get a few paces between them. "I already told you, Master Garland wishes-"

"Garland has his own reasons!" Zidane snarled, not ready to play her game again. He rushed forward, dropping his Ultima weapon and unsheathing his Orichalcons in the process.

Mikoto scowled and put her blade in a defensive position to defend against the powerful strikes of her older brother. Her boots left a skid mark in the dirt as his weapons clashed against her own. "Why are you listening to Garland?! You aren't his servant anymore! Even if you were, your mission was to protect the genomes!"

"I will still protect them...just so long as I do Master Garland's bidding as well!"

You're doing a pretty crappy job at it if you're gonna destroy their new home!"

"That's where you're wrong, Zidane!" she growled forcefully back, black energy building up around her. "I will always be Garland's servant! I was bound to him in the past and am still so in the present! He knows me and my weaknesses. He knows from my past that I have insatiable desires and uses them for his bidding," her energy lashed out, knocking the male genome back.

Zidane's mind whirled for a moment as he was thrown back, but a second later he caught onto his senses again and flipped, landing on his feet. He threw up his weapons in defense as Mikoto rushed at him, interlocking weapons yet again. "So you think that so long as you attack us, destroy worlds and become your past self again, that he'll actually respect you enough to bring no harm to the genomes??! They hold your humanity! Once you destroy Gaia, they'll be the first to go!" Zidane felt his adrenaline pumping and a great deal of heat rise in his chest, "You don't have to do this! Mikoto, I saw it in your eyes, you don't want to fight us! You kept telling Dagger to back down. You told _me_ to back down and even now your blasts are only warning shots! If you wanted to seriously hurt me, you would have done so already!" He saw the girl hesitate slightly at his words and narrowed his eyes, "I turned away from him; Garland is nothing but a sick man in my mind. You can leave his side too."

The female genome shook her head furiously. "No, it's not the same!" she shouted, tears stinging her eyes. A flash of golden energy burst forth, this time knocking the air out of Zidane as he skid across the ground.

"Zidane!" he heard his friends cry out his name in shock and fear. They were about to run towards him when Mikoto continued, "I am not like you Zidane! In your past, you were a great warrior, a hero just as you are today! As you have in this life, you dedicated yourself to protecting a princess. Your unorthodox manner would receive criticism aloud, yet admiration rung under it as you pulled off feats that others would consider impossible! I am like you in that manner; I reflect my past life. I was blood thirsty, a terrible curse upon any planet I set foot on. I was a destroyer of Sailor Scouts, and was even the cause of your own demise Zidane! Don't you see?! Garland wishes me to fight you because he knows I will win!" The tears now freely fell down Mikoto's cheeks, "Please! Please if you only knew about what happened back then you'd-"

"Mikoto," she stopped when he spoke, getting to his feet. She saw Zidane take a deep breath before looking her dead in the eyes, "First of all, despite what Garland said, we don't know for sure you would defeat me…" He gave her a knowing look, a small grin forming as he continued, "After all, Galaxia stabbed Erymanthus from behind when he was recovering from wiping out a chunk of the Negaverse's forces."

Zidane watched with a feeling of satisfaction as she recoiled in shock. He had her full attention now. Good. "Second of all, if you hadn't already figured it out from my last statement, I _do_ know what happened back then." The genome could practically taste the shock radiating around him from Mikoto and his allies standing behind him. He knew he would have a lot of explaining to do, but he'd answer their questions once everyone was in the clear. "I know Serenity didn't want me to remember; she didn't want me to take up the responsibilities I had back then, but I chose to anyway. Because of that, I know why you feel you have to do this; I won't butter coat it, Galaxia did some pretty nasty things," he said, letting his words sink in before continuing, "But I do know something else, Mikoto…Galaxia, like you are now, was being manipulated." He closed his eyes, letting his mind travel back to his earliest memories, "Originally, Galaxia was not just the protector of the Galaxy, but an inspiration to all scouts and knights. It wasn't just because of her powers. No she had a pure heart and a soul to match. She was the definition of a perfect sailor scout, a terrible foe to her enemies, yet the most loving person to her allies." He opened his eyes and sighed heavily, "You're right that she had an insatiable desire; it was to protect the galaxy from harm. I don't know when Garland came into the picture, but originally, it was Chaos that had gotten his hands on Galaxia, and he twisted that desire to find the brightest star, which is the star of Cosmos. But even then Galaxia still fought him. I was long gone by then, but Serenity wasn't! If you listen to her details of what happened that day, the day when she was awakened as Cosmos, you would know that right before she was destroyed Galaxia broke free from everyone's grasp!"

"What? Th-that can't be true!" Mikoto gasped, eyes widening.

Zidane's eyes softened, "It's true, she overpowered the darkness in her, by opening her eyes and letting herself see the light." He took a step forward, sheathing his Orichalcons as he did, "Why can't you do the same?"

Mikoto's gaze dropped, "I…I can't. I can't do it alone-"

"Who said you'd have to?" she looked at him again, to see that her brother had a hand outreached to her, "I won't make you do this on your own. We'll get through this together." She stared at his hand for a long while, letting her mind process what she had heard. Could she really be free of Master Garland? She looked in her brother's eyes one more time. They were reassuring and full of patience, waiting for her to make her decision yet already knowing that she had made it.

Sheathing her sword, she stepped forward and took hold of his hand.

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Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


	38. Chapter 38

ZT: Hiya people! I'm back again.

Kuja: (Looks pleased for once) Yes she is.

ZT: …What are you happy about?

Kuja: What? Can't a genome be please when the authoress updates.

ZT: Not when I'm the authoress and you're the genome.

Kuja: True, but its not everyday you openly admit something to your readers.

ZT: Huh? What are you- OH! You read my reviews again didn't you?!

Kuja: Yes I did so spill it!

ZT: Ok ok fine… What Kuja's talking about is one of my reviewers pointed out that there were some inconsistencies in the story. I actually noticed this awhile ago and was, well, I was too lazy to go and tidy up the chapters to make it fit. So, I wanted to apologize for any times something would come up in the story that would make you guys say "What? That doesn't fit…" And at the same time, I'd like to thank all of you for sticking with the story for so long! And those of you who have stuck with this story since I started posting it, over a year and a half ago (Taeniaea, especially thanks to you, who have been reviewing this fic since May of '07!), you guys are golden!

Kuja: Huh…so you say oops, then cover it up with a bunch of compliments for the readers?

ZT: Well I've been meaning to do that for awhile.

Kuja: And you decided to do it not…why?

ZT: Um…I had diet coke instead of pepsi?

Kuja: Works for me.

ZT: Ok! One more thing before I start the next chapter: _**I want everyone whose been reading to send me a review that at least says hi with your screen name/online name/ whatever you wish to be called**_; I want to be able to thank all of you in the final chapter for reading. So make sure to do that ok? On with the show! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter (Nope, not gonna count em)

Zidane smiled warmly as Mikoto took his hand, and pulled her into a warm embrace. He half expected the younger genome to go stiff in his arms, but it seemed that was just what the doctor ordered as she buried her head in his chest, grasping handfuls of his vest and scarf as she did. Letting his sister sob out apologies, he glanced back at his friends. By the looks on their faces, they were more than a little confused, but at the same time, it looked like they got the hint that Mikoto had not fought them as a choice. He glanced back down at her, stroking her back in comfort. There were a few things he didn't get though…how did Garland get his hands on Galaxia's sailor crystal anyway? Galaxia had taken his when she defeated Erymanthus, and he guessed that she got a hold of Panagiotis's as well…but how did Garland manage to get Sailor Galaxia's from, of all people, Chaos?! Well, he could have done so after the last battle between the two, but Zidane doubted that. _What's really going on here?_ He wondered. As if to answer, a sudden jolt coursed through his body.

* * *

His head was swimming…What on Gaia just happened? Wasn't the battle over? Hadn't they just had a warm, tender moment as proof of that? Then why was he now lying on the ground, his body aching all over. He heard a chorus of groans behind him, and knew that the others had been hit as well. _Damn it all!_ Zidane grit his teeth, seeing energy still crackling in the air above him from the attack. He heard the clacking of boots heading in his direction and tried to sit up, only to be stopped by the weight of a body on top of him. Looking down, he saw Mikoto's unconscious form hanging limply over him, unmoved from where she had been thrown by the same attack as he was. _Ugh! If I had only noticed it sooner…!_ A shadow slowly enveloped the two as a dark figure loomed over them. A palm crackled with a golden light right above them, too close to avoid and radiating enough power for the genome to know it was the end of both he and his sister.

"No one betrays me."

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Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!

Kuja: You're already done?

ZT: Yep I'm done. (Walks off)

Kuja: …

…

…

…

…

…

… Excuse me. (Walks after ZT)

(Loud voices, crashes, a quack, what sounds like the chittering of monkeys, and a scream of "NOT MY DR. PEPPER" later, Kuja drags ZT back in)

Kuja: Finish this!

ZT: Ok ok sheesh!

* * *

Mikoto felt her brother go stiff and looked up questioningly. "Mikoto get back with the others," he said, looking over her and in the direction of the Iifa tree. Although she wanted to ask what was going on, she recognized that look. She had seen it only once before, on the face of the Sun Prince during the invasion of the Moon Kingdom. Something was wrong. Terribly wrong. She backed behind him, but stayed close enough so that she could help if he needed it. After all, just because she decided not to become Garland's angel of death didn't mean she was now powerless…

Zidane took a deep breath and closed his eyes, concentrating on the powers connected with his soul that were trying to awaken. He pressed his palms together before slowly moving them away from each other to form a triangle with his hands. Those behind him watched in awe as a triangle made out of a thread of energy formed around the front of his hand with each point glowing with an orb of each of his elements: fire at the top, light on the bottom right corner, and darkness on the bottom left corner. Suddenly all the points shot energy beaming into the middle of the triangle, combining into one. His eyes snapped open, "PRISM'S MIGHT!" The energy at the center of the triangle shot out, expanding as it did to unleash the multi-elemental attack in the shape of a massive triangular prism. It met dark power which would have hit the whole group had he not done something. Gritting his teeth, Zidane dug his heels into the ground in an attempt to keep from getting thrown back from the force of his own attack and that of the dark one he was trying to cancel out. _Come on…You have more than this, Zidane! Push it back!_ he coached himself, letting the power of his star seed pump more power into his attack. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the attack died down. Releasing his own spell, Zidane dropped to his knees, gasping for air. A moment later, an Alexandrian queen and golden Sailor scout were by his side, checking to see if he was alright.

"Amazing show of power Zidane…or should I just call you Erymanthus now?" Everyone looked up as the attacker slowly made his way forward. He was dressed in black and gold armor, with black hair and dark eyes, a black cape fluttering behind him in the slightest breeze. Zidane narrowed his eyes as the newcomer continued, "After all, you are showing traits that Erymanthus inherited from his parents as well, having Apollo's ability to see the future…"

"Who are you?" Dagger demanded an answer. Even though she tried not to show it, just the sight of this man struck terror into her heart. What sort of monster had come to Gaia now?!

Mikoto's eyes narrowed slightly, but still shimmered with fear. "Dagger…" she whispered, "That's Master Garland."

"What?!" Zidane and Dagger both looked at the golden scout before turning their attention to the man again. The Alexandrian queen didn't want to believe it; this man was the old wizard she and her friends had defeated? The fear she felt before doubled as dread suddenly decided to pick it up a notch as well. This was why he needed Serenity. She could already tell he was so much more powerful than before, and now he was a young man again, in his athletic prime! And she had a feeling that was only the tip of the iceberg… Of course he would need the power of someone as strong as Cosmos to bring him back in this state! And because he used Cosmos to bring himself back, she was not there now to help against the revived wizard.

Zidane on the other hand looked more on the angry side. He got to his feet and drew his Orichalcons, "Where's Kuja?" Zidane had seen Kuja take off towards the Iifa tree, which is where Garland had just come from. If the genome wasn't here then…

"Oh he's taking a little nap in his tree house," Garland replied, drawing a menacing black blade, "Care to join him?"

"Sure…after I kill you!" he snarled, dashing forward. The now young wizard smirked, moving his blade with such swiftness that Zidane couldn't even tell when the man had blocked him daggers. "Perhaps as the son of Apollo and prince of the Sun, you might have put up a little fight…" Zidane suddenly felt a great deal of pressure outlining his body. He struggled against it, but eventually it forced his fingers open, effectively making him drop his weapons, "But you are a genome now, and have yet to awaken your past life completely. You never had a chance." Zidane's arms were pinned to his sides and the pressure froze him in place as the Garland raised his blade.

"_**Galactic Destruction!!"**_ The wizard sighed and pointed his blade towards the sailor attack coming his way. It fizzled out as it reached the tip of the blade. "Don't think I have forgotten about you," Garland's voice came out almost mirthful, and Zidane saw from the corner of his eyes that Mikoto seemed to be put under the same spell as he was now.

"Let them go!" Dagger exclaimed, a white aura surrounding her.

The wizard laughed, "Save your energy, little healer. You will use all of it in healing before I finish with these whelps." He turned to Zidane again, "Now where was I? Ah yes, let's see how well that Life spell of your white mages works now shall we?"

He raised his blade.

Zidane closed his eyes as he saw the blade begin to come down. He fell back as something connected with his chest, knocking him to the ground.

A gasp, followed quickly by the sound of metal clashing against metal.

Zidane opened his eyes as he felt his bond suddenly break. He was greeted by the back of a silver being, blocking Garland's attack with a staff.

"Let's just keep this little squabble between you and me, hm?" Cosmos proposed to Garland with a smirk.

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Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


	39. Chapter 39

ZT: Happy holidays everyone! Well, we're reaching the end of OSCAF. The next chapter will be the final one

Kuja: You mean it?! I'll finally be free?

ZT: (Sighs) Yes Kuja, you'll be free…for awhile

Kuja: YES!!!!!

ZT: Anyway…remember to send me reviews so I can thank you for reading Oscaf (I accept anonymous reviews too, so don't let not having an account deter you). Now on with the show! I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

Chapter…um…

If looks could kill, Garland was sure he would have perished under the gaze the silver warrior was giving him. Of course, he had to admit he wasn't surprised; she had that look in her eyes every time she saw him. He smirked, "What? No sarcastic greeting for your old friend 'Usagi-chan'?"

"Maybe next time," she growled, putting her strength and power behind her staff, giving it enough thrust to knock the dark wizard back a few feet.

Garland composed himself and looked at her with a mixture of amusement and confusion, "You wish to fight me? Here?" Of course he knew she wanted to fight; Cosmos never drew her staff unless she was about to do something big. It was her key weapon, the one she used when bringing down giants or resurrecting worlds…of course he wasn't too afraid, Cosmos would never be able to defeat him, but she would take the chance of destroying Gaia if she fought here. Considering there were eight people who looked like they were seeing a ghost yet overjoyed to see the ghost, he didn't think she'd want to take that chance; she had precious people here.

"No." The simple statement was followed by Garland's eyesight being consumed by silver and white as the warrior came at him with a speed he only had seen in his life a few times. He realized the white was Serenity's wings as he felt himself lifted off the ground, her staff keeping him from attacking her with his sword while her free hand gripped firmly on the collar of his armor. He thought for a moment that she was taking him up into space, but dashed that thought when he realized they were going more in a diagonal line than a vertical one. Where was she taking him?

* * *

The others watched as Serenity suddenly dashed at Garland, lifting him in the air and flying off in the direction of the Iifa tree. "Where's she going?" Dagger wondered aloud, still trying to process that the scout was even alive.

"Hey what gives lady?! You said she was dead!" Eiko stomped her foot, looking at Mikoto.

The golden warrior shook her head, "I thought she was…Though I am glad I was wrong." She looked at the retreating two, _Now perhaps the cycle can finally end…_

The group watched in surprise as a red glowing orb suddenly lit the sky over the Iifa tree. Zidane blinked in surprise, recognizing it instantly. "Hey, that's…!"

"We should aid her!" Steiner announced, "After all, we have fought Garland before and know about his powers-"

Zidane interrupted the knight, "We're staying out of this now."

"What?!" everyone except Mikoto exclaimed.

He turned his eyes away from the orb and to them, "Serenity is a team player. If she pulled him away, she had a reason for doing so…right Mikoto?" He looked to his little sister for confirmation.

The younger genome nodded, "If Cosmos were to battle upon a planet at her full strength…she endangers the planet and its inhabitants…She does not want to put Gaia in that kind of danger."

"If she knows that her power puts planets in danger, it means she has used it on other planets before…" Freya mused aloud.

Mikoto nodded, "Not usually willingly, but there have been times when enemies have forced her hand…Garland most likely wanted to do that to her now. She would go out of her way to make sure that doesn't happen here though."

"Why?" the Burmecian asked, what made Gaia so special?

Mikoto looked at her in confusion, then her eyes widened ever so slightly as she suddenly realized something. "Serenity…never told you, did she?" Seeing their confused looks, she continued, "Serenity has been a wanderer of the universe ever since her world was destroyed."

"We already knew that," Eiko sighed in annoyance.

The warrior nodded, "Were you also aware that her world was destroyed over twenty millennia ago?" Mikoto watched the little summoner trip over herself in shock. Even Zidane looked a little surprised.

"Twenty _thousand_ years?!" he voiced everyone's shocked thoughts, "She hasn't called anyplace home in twenty thousand years?!"

Mikoto shook her head, "There is one place…one place that has become her new home that she will protect with the same fierceness that she defended earth with…" Her head turned back towards the orb just as Cosmos and Garland flew through it, "That place we call Gaia."

* * *

Garland felt himself sailing through the air as Cosmos let go of him while she stopped her flight. Flipping in midair, his boots skidded across a stone floor which he found he was much closer to than he expected. Taking a quick glance around, he raised an eyebrow, "I recognize this place…"

"You should," Cosmos replied, standing a safe distance away from him, "You created it…Memoria I believe you called it?"

"Ah yes…amazing what you can come up when trying to fend off boredom," he mused, looking up at the red sky. He had to admit, Cosmos forcing Memoria open and bringing them inside was genius. It was quick to get to, and no power within here could get out to harm the planet…The little silver warrior could fight him to her heart's content with no worry at all. He glanced at her, "So…shall we begin?"

"Oh come now! Was it not you who was trying to bring up old times? We always talked before our battles," Cosmos shook her head. She looked at the dark wizard; he was listening. "I know you know what happened at the tree, that the spirits tried to rush me to the next stage of being."

"And judging from your attire, you decided to not go through with it," Garland observed, "Of course I also know the reason for that…"

The silver haired warrior nodded, "The cost for taking my time with the spirits was too much...but that does not mean that I intend to resume where we left off." She saw Garland begin to retort, but continued, silencing him, "I am tired of this never ending cycle of wandering and battling, I would rather die than continue that horrid life."

"Then why not just let me win, little Cosmos?" the wizard asked, a mixture of mirth and malice in his eyes.

If left his eyes as soon as she replied, "Because, despite what you may say, you hate this cycle as much as I do." Seeing her opponent recoil slightly, she continued, "You regained your power, meaning that you have resigned yourself to this life forever, but one other action lets me know you aren't too thrilled about it."

"And what would that be?" he asked, eyes narrowing. The little brat caught him off guard with that one…

"Because when you came out of that stone prison, you called yourself by your true name, Garland, instead of Chaos." She looked at her long time enemy with a bit of pity, "You thought I was dead; you thought destiny was done with us…"

Garland shook his head and let out a small laugh, "Are you trying to convert me with your little heart to hearts? Come now, I am Chaos, not one of those moldable fools whose strings we pull."

"I am merely stating what I know, Chaos," she replied, eyes narrowing, "And also giving you the reason why I am going to defeat you right here and now." She tightened her grip on her staff and got in an offensive position. "I am ending this for both of our sakes."

"Are you forgetting something, Cosmos? We cannot exist without each other," he pointed out, posing to attack with his blade.

"I know that…" she replied, "Which is why this is going to be Cosmos's battle as well." With that, the two sped off. Weapons clashed and power flashed as the two attacked each other, whizzing in and out of the rooms of Memoria.

The world around them swirled, reacting to their powers and memories creating a big mess. "It seems that plan of yours is failing, Cosmos." Garland smirked as their weapons locked, "We aren't any better off than we have ever since we began our fight all those years ago." As Garland spoke those words, the scenery around them changed to that of the Galactic cauldron. In the background, Chaos sneered at Sailor Moon as she wept over her fallen comrades and the destroyed Earth, before she screamed in a mixture of agony and rage. Power erupted from her body, catching the dark warrior off guard as she transformed into Sailor Cosmos. "Perhaps you should have stayed with those spirits…" he smirked.

That is until Cosmos lashed out with a power attack, knocking him back, "Yeah, you would have liked that wouldn't you? You might have actually won then!" The scenery changed again, this time to the temple of the Star Kingdom. "The spirits told me about the pool, how it can show you what you need to know. I wanted to know how my allies would fair should I take the time to become the Star Queen." Garland glanced to the side, seeing a Serenity look alike gazing into a pool. She recoiled in shock and turned to the orbs, telling them she couldn't wait, that she would just have to defeat Chaos as Cosmos.

"You always were an optimistic one, weren't you?" he glanced at her.

"Check out that white orb, she'll let you know that of all people, I'm the one who will always hang onto Hope," she replied, referring to the fourth and final orb she had encountered. Hope had stayed silent until she had gone back to the temple; she knew what Serenity's decision was going to be. The scout wasn't sure why, but all the orbs had seemed pleased when she turned them down and returned…

Stopping herself before she went down memory lane, the warrior flew forward, taking Garland with her as she entered another room. This one was already preset, looking just like the Moon Kingdom during its final battle. Garland laughed when he noticed the main people the scene focused on. The sailor scouts had just been struck down by the shadow warrior as princess Serenity looked on in shock. Next to her, lying on the ground was Panagiotis, defeated by Galaxia and his star seed taken. "Even during battle, you memory still goes to your court? You truly are pitiful."

"My loved ones are my strength." Serenity replied, "I know I can always count on them."

"Oh really? Where are they n-" the wizard stopped in mid sentence, shouting in pain as something searing hot struck his back. He turned to see what attacked him, expecting some annoying mist monster, and his eyes widened in surprise and rage, "_You_! You should be dead!"

"Not until we see you dead." Garland scowled and opened his palm to destroy the one who spoke, but stopped. Cosmos was conjuring up something behind him, and he did not like how powerful it was.

_Star of Cosmos, please put all your power into this last strike…_Cosmos silently prayed, all of her power filling the staff. Garland's eyes widened when he saw Cosmos's silver hair turn back to gold. She was putting so much power into her staff that she was losing her scout form! Garland might have had pride, but he was no fool; if he was hit by that power…well he didn't want to be hit by that power! The wizard tried to move, but quickly realized that he couldn't. "Necron defeated you with an effect spell before…I figured one might come in handy now." Cosmos smirked, making Garland finally realize that the scout had set this all up as a trap. And he walked right into it.

"You won't be able to avoid this either Cosmos!" Garland roared, half in rage half in panic.

"I told you this would be the end of Cosmos as well," she replied, rushing forward. There was a great flash of light as she casted her new attack for the first time, as the last attack Cosmos would ever cast:

"_**COSMIC REBIRTH!"**_

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Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


	40. Chapter 40

ZT: HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!

Kuja: (Pops a bottle of sparkling cider) Yay! You're not getting booz.

ZT: Of course not; I'm still under aged…for three more months.

Kuja: Good for you, you're abiding by the law.

ZT: Well that and I can't stand the taste of alcohol.

Kuja: Yep that sounds more like you.

ZT:…Anyway, I have decided to start out this new year…with the conclusion to OSCAF. Well, I could go on and make a whole speech about how grateful I am to have such wonderful readers, but I know you guys are waiting for the story, so I won't keep you waiting. I don't own Sailor Moon or FF9. Enjoy!

Of Silver Crystals and Feathers

The last chapter

White. That's all she could see. Normally the color was soothing to her, but not now. She was confused about what exactly had happened…she felt fine a moment ago…But now she felt an almost overwhelming chill course throughout her, particularly about her head. Though her ears did pick up the faintest sounds of laughter, so she guessed she wasn't in any particular danger...Suddenly she realized who was laughing, and knew exactly what happened.

"Zidane Tribal!!" Dagger screamed, wiping snow off her face and taking off after the retreating genome. Months had passed since the group had returned to the Mist continent and now Alexandria was covered in powdery white snow as winter set in…something that a certain blond haired genome had been enjoying a little too much lately. She guessed she couldn't blame him though; he didn't have his partner in crime that he had gotten so used to in a few short months to get rid of his boredom…

The Alexandrian queen slowed her pace as the blond bandit/silver warrior came to mind. None of the heroes really did have a good grasp on the whole story, but as she thought about it, she highly doubted anyone would be able to take anymore bombshells dropped. The gods knew she was _still_ trying to grasp at the fact that Zidane was royalty in a past life and according to…something, could still be considered the prince of the Sun if he wished to take up the title. And she thought the war with Kuja had been mind reeling!

The thought of the silver haired genome made Dagger frown slightly. They had found Kuja at the foot of the Iifa tree just as they watched Memoria implode. He looked a little weary, but no where near as bad as they thought he'd be, having fought Garland on his own before the wizard paid them a visit…she guessed Cosmos might have had something to do with that. The said genome decided to stay on the Outer Continent and help Mikoto with the other genomes as well as research a way to help the black mages extend their lifespans. It worked out for both sides; despite his changed ways, it would have been too much to ask of the people to accept Kuja after the atrocities he had committed, and the genome could start a new life on the Outer Continent without a whole world's hatred on his shoulders. Little did she know, she was not the only one reflecting on the past at that very moment…

* * *

Kuja let out a small sigh as his boots clacked against wooden planks. When he first started his ascent, it had been cool, but tolerable since he was at such a low elevation. Now, as he glanced at the frost covering some leaves at the much higher elevation, he was suddenly glad that he finally took Serenity's advice/pressure to put on some pants, of course he could have done with his layer of face makeup to keep some of the chill away… He made a quick survey of the area and nodded in approval; the genome had discovered that with all various types of power flowing through the roots of the Iifa tree, they had acquired some unique qualities which might be a valuable key in helping the black mages. Because of that, Kuja had decided to make the tree his home, and was in the process of making a palace among the branches. Of course it would be a while before his new home was complete, but he was pleasantly surprised to find that he would not be doing construction alone. The black mages were naturally very skeptical when Kuja offered to research a method to expand their lifespans; after all he had made the same pitch before to get them to work for him during the war. However, after realizing he was being sincere this time, the mages began to warm up to the genome, and even offered to help him with construction of his new home as well as give him temporary lodgings just like the other genomes…

He stopped as he got to some steps freshly carved into a branch of the Iifa tree and glanced down. Below, areas were being cleared and homes were popping up amongst the branches along with various bridges and other means to ease movement in the tree. Those homes were the beginnings of what was currently being called the new Bran Bal, although there was a unanimous vote to change the name in the near future, since each genome decided they wanted to start new instead of holding onto memories of Terra. At the thought of that meeting he had accidentally started some months back, Kuja found himself smiling. Shortly after Garland had been destroyed, all of the genomes started gaining personalities, much like the one he had come across in the village when meeting up with Steiner and Vivi. He soon realized that it was because of Garland's power, the power of Chaos, that the genomes were unable to attain souls. Since Cosmos was the polar opposite of Chaos, her presence tamed his power, which is why the genomes were uncomfortable with Serenity when she first appeared, yet gained personalities around her as well…

Kuja began his ascent up the stairs; from what he gathered Chaos and Cosmos battled with each other and Necron near Gaia when it was still forming. Because of that, the newly formed moons took in any extra power that was left from the battle, the red moon taking in Chaos's power and the blue moon taking in Cosmos's, which was the reason why Sailor Moon had difficulties; she could not draw power from such a dark entity as something influenced by Chaos. Of course, this was mainly speculation on his part; he never really had the chance to ask Serenity about it…he never really had the chance to ask her about much now that he thought about it. But it really didn't matter to him; if she was a princess he loved in a past life, a warrior, she could be a character in a story for all he knew or cared! All that was in the past now, and the only reason he acknowledged them was because they helped mold the woman he fell so deeply in love with…A sigh escaped his lips as he remembered back then; he was so close…so close to never being able to say those words to her. If she hadn't gone to him before chasing after Garland…he probably never would have…

_

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_

Garland had come out of nowhere and destroyed the Kisenian Blossom before turning his wrath on his creation. It had taken all the power he had left in his Trance to make a barrier to keep the power of the wizard from destroying him, but it hadn't been enough to keep the attack from knocking him unconscious… Kuja stirred as a gentle voice called out his name. He knew that voice…but it couldn't be! Opening his eyes, the silver haired genome found he was staring into a pair of ethereal silver-blue eyes. His brain immediately processed that it was Cosmos he was looking at, and immediately the scout found herself thrown from the position of holding a person to being the person held. "Gods Serenity, how many times are you going to die in my presence!" he tried unsuccessfully to sound angry, wrapping his arms tightly around her smaller frame.

_He heard her laugh softly, "Sorry about that…had to have a meeting with some deities that wanted to teach me how to defeat Garland for good…" Kuja pulled back in shock and the scout took that opportunity to stand. Her eyes immediately shifted to the direction where he had left the rest of the crew, where he later learned Garland had taken off to…_

"_What is it? How do we defeat him when he is in this form?" he asked. The soldier's back was now fully facing him, and as silence wore on, Kuja began to feel his gut filling with dread again. "Serenity…?" he asked carefully._

"_I don't know." Her answer caught him off guard, and her explanation only caused him even more confusion, "I turned down their offer."_

"_Why?" he asked, unable to hide the incredulity in his voice._

_He heard her sigh before continuing, "There's not enough time…if I had stayed, the cycle would have been repeated, and the plan would have failed anyway…"_

"_You cannot honestly be considering going to battle him then?! He will destroy you!"_

"_He can't." Kuja's eyes filled with curiosity at her simple statement. She continued, "Garland __**is**__ Chaos, Kuja. He's the one I have battled with for so many millennia, and the one who shares my destiny. We must fight one another until the end of all existence, desperately attempting to destroy one another; yet never able to…Chaos and Cosmos cannot exist without each other…" She shook her head, "It's funny, but up until now, I never pitied the guy. I always thought his humanity was gone…But now I remember where I heard that name before…Chaos always used to mock me, by calling me by the name I had on Earth. I learned once that before he determined to stay Chaos all the time, he was called 'Garland'. I made a point to forget it though, refusing to stoop to his level. If he didn't though…then maybe Chaos and I aren't that different after all…maybe that's why, even though we were sworn enemies, we learned to tolerate each other. Even though they were always filled with sarcasm and followed by a battle meant to be to the death, we would always talk and, though I would never admit it at the time, I looked forward to them…Chaos was the only person who I was sure to see again. I guess I never realized though, that I was the only person __**he**__ was sure to see again as well…"_

_The genome could hear many different emotions mixing together to get that tone in Cosmos's voice. It wasn't one that he particularly liked; he couldn't read it well and it almost sounded like resignation… "What do you plan to do then?"_

_She paused for a long time, "…I do not want to go through that again. I don't want to be a lone wanderer with an impossible purpose anymore…but I bear for another to have that life in my place…let alone have Chaos continue as he obviously plans…" She turned to face him, a sad smile on her face, "So the only way to stop this cycle forever is to kill Chaos…"_

"_But you just said neither side can win. Chaos cannot die so long as you~" Kuja stopped in midsentence, suddenly realizing what she meant to do, "Serenity, no!"_

"_There's no other choice. In order for Chaos to die, Cosmos will need to as well…" she tried, but it was obvious the genome was not about to take it that easily._

"_Then revert back to sailor moon, or better yet, turn back into Serenity! I will kill Chaos and there will be no Cosmos around to keep the bastard alive through some…some…curse of Destiny!" he exclaimed._

"_Even if it were that simple, you don't have the power to stop Chaos on your own..."_

"_I'll take that chance!" He grabbed her hands and pulled her close to him, "Serenity, I don't want to lose you. It…it hurts too much, and I don't have the strength to withstand that pain…" He looked deep into her eyes, "Please, let's find another way…I can't stand to lose the woman I love again…"_

* * *

He finally managed to convince Serenity to let him help her, and they came up with a plan to trap Chaos in Memoria. Going in ahead of time, they went to a specific room, a room that resembled the Moon Kingdom. After letting Serenity know about his encounter with Panagiotis, the scout let him borrow her Luna Pen to adjust his appearance to that of Panagiotis's. Using his own knowledge and power to erase the Panagiotis in the memory scene, he then lay there in wait until she came in with Garland. The wizard never realized he was real until he his him with the most powerful Flare Star he could conjure up while still retaining enough power to teleport away once Cosmos let loose her final attack…

Kuja never expected the power of the Cosmic Rebirth to be that powerful. And his heart stopped when he saw Memoria implode…ending the era of Chaos and Cosmos in something he considered rather anti-climactic for two such powerful entities.

However, something about that time still bothered him. Something Serenity had said still nagged at him, and he was tired of trying to figure it out himself…he was sure Mikoto knew the answer, but she hated the subject and tended to avoid it, so the question stayed unanswered for months. But now it was eating him up inside, and _someone_ was going to answer it…whether he lived through it or not.

Reaching the top of the stairs, he felt the cold air stick in his throat. He was near the top of the tree now, where a decent sized deck had been built. The branches surrounding it had been trimmed or removed so that no part of the continent or ocean was hidden from view…Whenever Kuja couldn't find her this was where she'd be. She was looking out over the ocean with her back to him, her blond hair falling loosely around her to add some warmth rather than tied up as she had gotten used to fashioning it with all the construction lately. A white coat that brushed the deck behind her was wrapped around her frame to keep the cold at bay, white fur trim at the wrists, bottom, and neckline adding to the protection from the elements. As Kuja took a step forward, the sound of his footsteps alerted the woman of his presence, but she didn't turn around. "It's not like you to make the venture up here on your own; usually you take the dragon."

"It's too cold up here for him," Kuja replied easily, having expected her reaction. "Plus I needed the time walking gave me…"

She glanced back at him, her eyes showing curiosity, "Oh?"

He took a deep breath, "Why?"

She turned fully to him this time, and he could see that the fur trim on the neckline and bottom of her coat was connected by a length that travelled right down the center. "'Why'?" her eyes sparkling with a little mischief, "Well I thought that the view was nice up here and decided to have a quick look since construction's been going slow since winter settled in and~ oh! That's not the right 'why' question, is it?"

Kuja smirked, "Well that was not the right question, but it was one I had, so thank you for answering it for me." He looked at her, his eyes softening, "Actually, I wanted to ask you something…about then." He saw her mischievous look fade; she knew what "then" meant. "What cycle would have been repeated?"

A sigh escaped the woman's lips, and Kuja knew that she was well aware of what cycle he was asking about. She was silent a moment, and turned her attention back to the ocean. After a few moments, the genome thought she was going to ignore him, but finally she spoke. "…The power of scouts of destiny, such as Cosmos, come at specific times…It cannot go to a scout who has been reincarnated a few times already; it has to go to a brand new one. There was only one Sailor Moon; before then the Moon royals were never allowed to and never had a reason to fight, so a scout was never needed. That is one of the reasons why Sailor Moon became Sailor Cosmos." She lifted her eyes towards the sky, "Gaia is young, and never had a threat which would need a scout specifically until Chaos came. Not only was a scout needed, but a scout of destiny who would have the power to stand up to Chaos. Had a scout awakened while Cosmos was away, that new soldier would have to take up the torch and continue the battle with Chaos."

"A new Sailor Cosmos would have been born?" Kuja clarified, although in disbelief. The blond nodded. "Did~?"

"We both knew," she replied, guessing his question, "Galaxia was the scout of destiny before Cosmos… we both not only knew a new Sailor Scout was being born, but we knew who it was." She turned towards him again, "Had a few more moments passed, Queen Garnet til Alexandros the 17th, would also have the title Sailor Gaia to add to her list…Neither of us could live with putting Dagger through that."

Kuja sighed, walking over to the railing of the deck next to where she stood, "I had a feeling you both could answer that question…"

She raised an eyebrow, "Then why did you come all the way up here? Asking Mikoto would have saved you a walk, she's down in the village."

"I know," he smiled, "But I was coming to get you as well." He wrapped an arm around Serenity's waist from behind, taking her left hand in own and bringing it to his lips. The cold metal surface of a simple gold band made him inwardly smile as the memory of going back to the dwarves to make them perform a correct wedding ceremony crossed his mind. They had given it much thought, and finally decided that since "His hooliness" was the only priest on the Outer Continent, he was the only one able to give them a proper blessing. That was the day Kuja made a point to put on pants and take off his make-up for good.

Serenity smiled, turning her head slightly to look at the man behind her, "Already being so protective? I may not have the Sailor Cosmos form anymore, but the strength and abilities are my own. I think I can handle a little walk and cold."

"True," he replied, tracing circles on her abdomen with his right index finger, "But our little friend has yet to earn such a reputation. My eyes watch her as well."

She blinked in surprise, "We haven't been told the gender yet."

"Wishful thinking," he replied, twirling his wife so that she faced him before catching her lips with his own.

Serenity welcomed the kiss and wrapped her arms around her husband's neck. If anyone had told her the day she became Sailor Moon that this was how her Sailor Scout journey would end, thousands of years later after having battled the fiercest warriors the universe had to offer, being comatose for five millennia, with her helping build a new society for a group of creatures just beginning to form souls, married to a former evil villain who was currently researching a way how to make his creations live longer after they received personalities, just barely starting to show the signs of carrying former evil villain's child…let's just say she would have thrown away the broach and claimed "Sailor who?" for the rest of her life. But as she thought back to her journey to get to this place, right here, right now, she found herself deciding she wouldn't change any of it. As they broke their kiss, Serenity let her head rest against Kuja's shoulder and looked out west. The sun was just beginning to set, making the sky light up in various shades of pink, orange and red. It would be night soon, and Serenity found herself realizing that it was the first time in a long time, that she didn't know, and was looking forward to, what tomorrow would bring.

**_End_**

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ZT: And so our story ends. I hope you all enjoyed this story as much as I did writing it. Keep a look out; I don't think I'll be making a sequel to oscaf, but I have a few ideas rolling through my head for new stories, one of which is another Sailor Moon X-over. Ok so here's my final tally-ups and thank you's for this story:

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Thank you -ichigo14-, Chibi-Tenshi-Bunny, Cor-chan, Firehedgehog, Gatecrasher12, Lilaclight, Mage Raistlin, RadiataElf, Risse, Sage of Dorks, Satsubatsu Yue, SerenityMoon, Shi-no-aki, Shikyo-sama, Sue01, Taeniaea, Taiki, Teh Sad Panda, Tsuki no Echo, Usagi Uchiha Yuy Kudo, XxForbidden-MemoriesxX, YoukaiMassacre, inufan155687, plutomoon2, rezhighwind, setsuna-3000, unspoiled rini, vegetagurl, vynnessia, zenithtime for putting Oscaf as your favorite story

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And thank you SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much for reviewing all my reviewers! COOKIES, PIZZA, CANDY, AND DR. PEPPER FOR EVERYONE!!!

-ichigo14-, Insomniac Owl, CelticHero, a person writing a review, failedclown36 (*huggles gen* ^^), Firehedgehog, cherryblossoms1987, Taiki, Raine of The Darkness Clan, Taeniaea, setsuna-3000, Black Lady of Emptyness, blusport4378 (still waiting for that ff9xsm fic ;D), Sue01, zodiac1231, moon fan, Oirasse (ISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSIIIIIIII *huggles* I finished the story, what do I get? Kuja: *backs away slowly*), giggles, SerenityMoon, J., RadiataElf, Destined DeathReaper, Tsuki no Echo, Teh Sad Panda, Lady alpha wolf, Usagi Uchiha Yuy Kudo, Reiko x 3 (If you ever need help keeping Kuja and Dark under wraps, let me know, I have Dr. Pepper to spare thanks to Oirasse :D), sunao, Lady Cinnibar, Hannah, BlueRedemption, Littel Chaos, inufan155687, Lilaclight, Failisse

And as always.... Love it? Hate it? Review it! Till next time!


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